Raphael's Big Green Hand Holding Mine
by PonderRose
Summary: Your crazy uncle gets the grand idea to start up a sub shop next to a Japanese noodle house. You, who is only there to help him, get to meet one of the city's more unusual inhabitants. Fear turns to friendship, and friendship turns into something else. A Raphaelxreader story with a Leonardo-Raphael-reader love triangle later on. Enjoy!
1. The Lost Sai

_I wasn't looking for her and I know she certainly wasn't looking for me….. The image of a girl with long hair had her back to me resonated in my mind. She was sitting on a rock gazing out at the sea. I wasn't searching for her….. The girl's head slowly looks over her shoulder at me. I never wanted to fall in love; I never thought I could love anyone…_ "Raphael." _The sound of her voice echoed all throughout my body. I wasn't looking, but I found her._

 _We somehow found each other._

"Uh, uncle; I like your new shop but…. do you think it was a good idea to put it right beside a Japanese restaurant?" I stood beside my very eccentric uncle in front of his new sub shop. He had always dreamed about owning his own eatery and he could make a mean sandwich. But the place was sketchy at best and next door to a well-established restaurant. I didn't want to hurt his business as much as I didn't want him disturbing my uncle's.

"Oh, it's fine!" My uncle waved his hand nonchalantly in the air. "Mr. Murakami is great! Besides, we make totally different food." "I can see that but…." "Don't worry, baby niece. It'll work, you'll see." Uh, ok; if he said so. With arms full of boxes, we entered the shop for the first time. From the first step, I was not impressed. Uncle, however….

Dropping the boxes full of cooking supplies, his arms spread out wide at his sides. "Just look, baby niece?! Isn't it wonderful?!" "That's… one way to put it. Um, did you see the place before you signed the lease, uncle?" "Of course not! Who has time for that?" Not you obviously. "Oh, look! Look over here," uncle pointed at one of the back corners behind the counter. "Rat traps!" Oh my god…. I couldn't even begin to measure how far my eyes rolled. This was going to be a long night. "With rats in 'em!" A long, loooooooong night.

I was in the middle of cleaning the smuggy window while uncle was a whirl behind the counter. He was so engrossed in his work that he didn't notice the front door open for the first time. A short elderly Japanese gentleman stuck his head inside. "Hello?" "Oh! Hello sir!" I quickly scrambled to greet him. From first sight, I knew he was blind but rightly decided not to address it; hopefully my uncle was as woke. "Hi, hello! How are you?" "Mr. Zilla?" "Uh, no. I'm his niece, Baby Zilla." "Baby?" He shook my hand. "Is that your real name?" "Er yes… My father's favorite movie is Dirty Dancing…. for some reason." "Oh! It's um….. a unique name," I smirked at his struggle to compliment it. "Thank you."

"Who ya talkin' to, baby niece?!" My uncle hollered from behind the counter on the floor. "It's our new neighbour, Mr. Murakami." "Neighbour? Ah, the noodle guy!" He hopped to his feet running over to him. "Hi! Nice to meet you! I'm the sub guy!" I sighed as he shook his hand enthusiastically with both hands. "It's a pleasure, Mr. Zilla," Mr. Murakami's voice was much calmer and lower. "Wow! I've never met a blind guy before. And a cook too!" "Uncle!" I blushed absolutely mortified. Mr. Murakami looked like he didn't know how to react at first before casually smiling.

"And I've never met anyone related to a rockstar before." "Yeah; bro got the singin' talent and I got the cookin' talent." "What my uncle means, Mr. Murakami, is that my other uncle, Rock Zilla, is the family celebrity. We're just sandwich people." "There's nothing wrong with that," the nice Japanese man reassured us. "This city needs people like us; those with a passion for food. Speaking of which," he held up a take-out box. It smelt….. interesting. Uncle was definitely curious.

"What is it?" "Pizza gyoza." "What's gyoza?" I asked, eyeing the box with the pungent aroma. "It's like a dumpling with thin dough. They're very popular with my 'ahem' customers." "Dude! Pizza dumplings? What a good idea!" Uncle snatched the box to pop one in his mouth. His eyes lit up with surprised delight. "Whoa! These are amazing! A+!" "Many thanks," Mr. Murakami gave a slight bow with his hands folded over his chest. He then turned to me. "Please, try one, Baby-chan." "Haha, Baby-chan; you're "Baby-chan"." "Uncle," my eyes rolled; they did that a lot around him.

"Sorry, Japanese bro. Baby niece here doesn't eat pizza." "Uncle!" His lack of filter left me incredulous. "Don't eat pizza? Heh, you're in the wrong city, dear." "Oh, I'll manage," I cracked a grin. This seemed to suit uncle just fine, who was currently shoving as many gyozas in his mouth as possible- which turned out to be a lot. "Well, what do you like to eat?" "Uh, lots of meat, potatoes, candy; I do like ramen." "I can make you that," he grinned back at me. "Thank you, Mr. Murakami. I look forward to it."

"Well!" He went to head to the front door. "It was a pleasure meeting the both of you." "And you, sir." "Yeah, dude! Pop by anytime, especially if you have more pizza dumplings." "Gyoza," I correct with an overused eyeroll. "That's what I said- dumplings. Have a good night, Japanese bro." "You too. Let me know if you need anything; I'm just next door. Good evening Zilla-san," he gave me a kind smile. "Baby-chan." "Good evening, Mr. Murakami," I shut the door behind him. Uncle planted his hand on his hip and smirked. "Bet you wish you liked pizza now." "You'd be surprised."

The shop took a whole three hours to clean- in particular because uncle paused every time he found a dust bunny he found "funny" or "realistic"….. Cause dust bunnies can be mistaken for the real thing apparently. Anyways…. Needless to say, I was tired of cleaning but still somehow had some energy left by ten o'clock. I had just finished putting away all the cleaning supplies when uncle stood at the front of the shop in the most accomplished stance. "Looks good! We did a good job!" "Good, mediocre; one of the two," I joined him. "Baby niece," his arm draped over my shoulder. "This is an invaluable experience for you. You're gonna learn firsthand how to run- and clean- you're very own restaurant." "Um, you know I want to be a writer, right?" "And what do you need when you write? Food, of course! Can't create on an empty stomach."

"Uh… huh. Well that is a valid point, uncle, but I need to buy food before I can eat it." His finger wagged in the air like he completely understood…. which I doubted. "I see what you're saying. You want me to make you one of my famous "baby" subs!" "I would love nothing more but….." "With extra-cheese, just how you like it." "You know what I like, but there's only one problem, uncle." "What's that?" "We have nothing to make sandwiches yet."

Uncle glanced around like he had completely forgotten that little- not so little- detail. "Oh… right." With a sigh, I went to grab my coat and wallet. "I'm going to get something to eat. Want me to bring you anything?" "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold the phone! You, my precious darling baby niece, want to go out in a brand new city, after dark, alone?" "Uh….." "By all means!" His arms then tossed up in the air. "You sure?" "You're a mature young lady who can quote Plato. You can handle yourself out there." "Thanks, uncle," I smiled.

"Oh, but I guess I should be the "responsible" guardian," he groaned. "That's probably a good idea; yeah." "Soooooooo be home by…. Is midnight too late?" "Yes." "Fine, then eleven-thirty; not a moment later! Ok, maybe a few moments later." "Great parenting, uncle," I sent him an ironic wink. "I'll be back in a little while," I then headed for the door. "Get me some more of the pizza dumplings!" "I think Mr. Murakami might have gone to bed already." "What?! But its only ten! Ugh, fine! Um, then get me a burrito." "From…. where?" He shrugged. "Do they have Taco Bell here? If not, find a convenient store or something. It's a big city; they gotta have burritos somewhere." "Ok, great. My mission now is finding my uncle a "burrito" because why." "You're a doll! Thanks!"

Why indeed. Uncle and his weirdly specific diet; and he had the audacity to poke fun at my non-pizza-eating ways. I had to admit though, this area of town was super sketch. Not many street lights, countless dark and dingy alleyways, chalked-full dumpsters…. Yeah, maybe I should have thought this over twice before departing. Oh well, I was out now and uncle wanted his burrito. Now I had to find a Taco Bell or Mexican fast food place. Gees! And I didn't want Mexican food. Half-annoyed and half-anxious, I continued down the street in search of anything food-related still open.

Raphael's P.O.V.-

I stared in horror as my sai laid in the middle of the busy street downtown. Damn! I literally never lost my sai in battle; that never happened and yet… there it was. For everyone to see in plain old view. God! Could this get any worse?

Due to the low level of Kraang and Foot activity, Donnie had the "brilliant" idea to split up on patrol. I admit, I was kinda into it at first; I always wondered what it would be like going solo. Turns out, it sucked. The only positive was that my brothers weren't here to make fun of me for idiotically losing one of my sai.

I had a run-in with two Kraang bots. They weren't much of a fight but it was my first real action all week, so it was better than nothing. They lasted two minutes before lying flat on the pavement; short but sweet. Unfortunately, I accidently lost one of my precious sai in the ordeal. It went flying and landed on the ground, making a clink sound. Now, I couldn't go home without it; Sensai would murder me, not to mention Leo….. Damn. I gotta do something! But what?

While I was contemplating this up on a nearby roof and keeping a very close eye on my weapon, I failed to notice the girl holding a Taco Bell bag walk down the street. I wouldn't have seen her until she suddenly stopped in front of my sai. My heart skipped a beat- several beats- when she bent down to pick it up. What?! What is this bimbo doing?! My jaw literally dropped. That's not hers! Why is she touching it?! No! No, no, no, no! This is not happening! Crap! Now I have to get it back," I cringed as I went to follow her like a total stalker. But who cares! She's got my friken' sia. I'll take it from her by force if I have to….. I didn't want to think what that meant right now, but yeah…. basically the situation now.

Baby's P.O.V.-

I finally found a Taco Bell….. forty minutes later. Luckily for me though, it was in a more crowded part of the city- the main street downtown to be exact. Lots of people, lots of noise, and lots of lights. Well, better than nothing. And on top of the safety factor, there was an open Taco Bell! Now uncle wouldn't talk my ear off about not understanding how cravings work. Uh, news flash- I'm a girl! If anyone knows how cravings work, it's me.

Speaking of my femininity, I was a little nervous about going right downtown so late. But my nerves calmed when nothing happened and no one paid attention to me. That works just fine for me! Nothing unusual really occurred until I was about half way down the stretch. Something shiny caught my eye up ahead. Upon closer inspection, I saw that it was a weapon of some sort; like this weird dagger. Curious, I thought reaching down to pick it up. It wasn't a gun and didn't have blood on it so I thought it alright to touch it. It looked real enough; I doubt it was a toy. Still, why would anyone carry this on their person? It looks clumsy and difficult to use. It almost reminded me of a ninja tool, if that wasn't too out there.

With a slight shrug, I put it in the pocket inside my coat after a quick check to see if anyone was looking. Why not? It was cool, if not slightly awkward. Then I headed back towards home. I didn't feel followed the way back but I knew something was off by the time I reached my area of town. There was no one else around, not that I could see anyways. Still, I couldn't shake this feeling…. It was so strong that I almost felt like running a couple of times. But I decided it was just nerves after nothing happened after a while.

I was about to put my headphones back in and listen to my iPhone, completely unaware of the presence trailing close behind. But I became aware very soon afterwards. I was about to turn the corner before this loud crash made me flinch. It was so sudden that I didn't have time to ask "who's there". But to my absolute horror, the one- or rather, thing- that made the thud made his presence none. He kept himself concealed in the shadows but I knew he was here; I could see the outline of something- something big.

"Alright," he said in the deepest, most serious voice he could muster I'm sure. "Hand it over." "W-what?" I took an instinctive step back, not taking my eyes off the figure. "Give it back!" "What are you talking about?!" I took another few steps backwards. He gave an angry sigh- he was actually sighing… for some reason. But the biggest shock came to me as he reluctantly emerged from the darkness.

My eyes widened, my jaw dropped open. Standing in front of me was a human-sized turtle. The most distinctive feature about him was his red eye mask, which made him all the more intimidating. "I'm not gonna ask again," he held his gigantic green hand open my way. "Hand it over." His hands immediately retracted back up to his eyes at the piercing echo of my scream. My shriek was so loud that it rang all throughout the area.


	2. Rescue and Release

I screamed at the top of my lungs for what felt like a full minute. It was loud and long enough to make the turtle creature wince and cover his ears. "Would you stop shrieking?! You're burning a hole through my eardrums!" He hollered back at me. But I don't think he was expecting what happened next. The second I stopped yelling, my feet took on a life of their own. They spun me right around and made a mad dash in the opposite direction. "Hey, wha-….!" The turtle's eyes rolled dramatically. "Fine! The hard way it is!"

That was the last thing I heard him say. I was running faster than even I knew I could. I was going so fast in fact that I failed to notice- or stop for- a group of gang members. They were loitering on the street around the bend which I just turned. They were big though, so I crashed into one of their chest's like a brick wall. "Hey!" An angry voice called out. I stumbled back a few steps and blinked to see a bunch of big, burly men all staring back at me. Oh my god! A cold shiver raced up my spine. Out of the frying pan and into the fire…. I don't know if these guys, these… brutes are actually better than the turtle monster.

There were three guys in total; one super skinny, one tall, and one big and broad. They were all grimy and scuzzy with what appeared to be purple dragon tattoos on their forearms. They looked gross and they smelt gross; needless to say, they were my first introduction to the uh 'ahem' gang life of the city. Judging by the way looking and smiling at me, they were happy about this unexpected introduction too.

"Well, well, well, what have we here?" The tall one, whom I assumed to be the leader- if you could call him that- of the small gang. "You lost, sweetheart?" Oh no! My mind kept screaming over and over again as this loser took a step towards me. I've gotta get away! "Awe, look at her shake. She's scared," the lanky guy laughed. "I'd be scared too if Hoogie here was hitting on me," the big one chortled. Hoogie? Really? That's the best "gang" name you could come up with? Oh who cares? My attention was on escaping these dumb yet dangerous clowns as soon as possible.

"Shut up!" Hoogie shouted over his shoulder before turning back to me. "Don't be afraid, babe; we aren't gonna hurt ya." "Much," Lanky added. This made the others laugh… for some reason. "She's so little; like a delicate flower." I guess this was meant as a tease but I didn't notice. I kept thinking of a way to run out of there. On my one side was a wall and the three guys had me cornered to it. "I wanna pick her!" Lanky's arm shot up. "No, me!" Big guy fired back. "Idiots! You don't "pick" girls," Hoogie then leered back at me with the sickest, most stomach-churning grin; his yellow teeth only emphasized his creepiness. "You fuck them." In that moment, I thought I might vomit all over the pavement. I knew what he was doing to me with those eyes; those disgusting pale eyes. I'd never experienced such lust directed at me before; it wasn't flattering. It was terrifying.

Without a word, I suddenly tried to dash in between Hoogie and Lanky, hoping that I would be too fast for them to catch. Unfortunately they were more agile than they looked. Big guy grabbed hold of my wrist, yanking me backwards before I knew what was happening. "Looks like we got a runner." "Good," Hoogie cracked his knuckles. "I like it when they play rough," he reached over to take my chin in his dirty hand, bringing it towards him. "Don't you worry, princess. We'll have you nice and tame in no time."

Before I even had time to react, I felt myself being grabbed again; this time by a much bigger hand. I was forcefully yanked out of big guy's grasp and dragged away from their little circle. When I finally blinked to my side, I saw none other than the turtle mutant from earlier. He was holding my wrist in one three-fingered hand and a dagger in the other. Wait, a dagger? I thought back to the weapon in my pocket. It looked identical! Was this… was it his? Is this what he's after?

The gang members immediately reacted to his arrival; not with shock to my disbelief but anger. "You?!" Hoogie stuck his forefinger in Mr. Turtle's direction. "What are you doing here?!" He demanded in an ironically accusing voice. What's even more to my shock is that Mr. Turtle actually smirked. He's smiling?! At a time like this? "Heh, and here I thought tonight's patrol would be boring. You're the first action I've seen all week, so make it good." "Oh yeah?!" They all pulled out these ridiculous-looking knives, aiming them his way. "Bring it!"

Oh my god, I came to realize that they were gonna fight. I've got to get out of here! Mr. Turtle looked at me as I started viciously twisting and turning in his grip, trying to get away. "Ugh," he let out an annoyed sigh like he had momentarily forgotten about me in the thrill of a fight prospect. Within seconds, I found myself swooped up into his arms princess-style. In the blink of an eye, he literally carried me up to the top of closest building and set me down on the roof; I didn't even have time to cry out in shock. Then he turned to leave. "Stay here," he commanded in a strict tone. "I'm not done with you yet." Ending on that, he hopped back down to engage in a fist fight with the street thugs.

Not done with me….? Well I'm most definitely done with him! Screw this! Tired of being grabbed and moved like a doll, I got up and brushed the dust off my clothes. Then I pulled out the dagger. Yes, this is what he's after; he wants his thingy back. Logic dictates that once I give it back to him, he'll have no reason to come after me again. All this can be over if I give it back… Without hesitation, I ran over to the edge of the building, very cautiously peering down. Boy, he brought me a long way up; how was I supposed to get down?! Maybe I could just hang onto the dagger; he'll come up for it eventually. But there's no guarantee that he'll bring me back down, even if I use it as leverage. Case in point, he's a ton stronger than me and could take it by force if he wanted. Plus I don't think I was in his good books right now.

Making a quick decision, I took in a deep, deep breath and called down at him. "Mr. Turtle!" The red-masked mutant paused momentarily after punching big guy in the face to glance up. When I had his attention, I threw the dagger down. He caught it, springing an expression of joy across his face. "Alright! Now we're talking!" He then resumed his sprawl with the thugs. Ok, I went back to the security of the middle of the roof. Now that that's done, I've got to find a way down from here. My eyes rapidly scanned for any sign of a fire-escape or stairs; even those scary thin metal ones you see on old building. Anything would do at this point; I didn't have a working phone yet to call for help and it was already so late at night. I had to find my own way down. I just had to!

Raphael's P.O.V.-

I gave my celebratory fist-bumps in the air. It's not like the Purple Dragons were a real challenge but it was better than nothing. I left them all face-planted on the pavement; maybe a little overboard but who cares? A fight's a fight, and I had my sai back! After giving it a once-over, I set it back in its holder and turned up to the top of the building. My hands planted firmly on my sides. "And now it's her turn."

I hopped up to the roof with relative ease; much easier when you're not trying to carry a frightened girl in your arms anyways. But to my surprise and mild horror, she was nowhere to be seen. Panic suddenly coiled around my chest. What if she fell or something? What if something happened to her?! Leo would never let me here the end of it! And I didn't want her to get hurt…. That wasn't part of my plan. I just wanted to yell at her a little; nothing too severe. Now all I could think about was finding the moron before someone else did… or before she got hurt. The very notion made me search faster.

My heart skipped a beat at the unexpected shrill coming from the side of the building. I looked over to see her dangling on a broken fire-escape ladder roughly four feet downwards. "You idiot!" Fear immediately filled every inch of me as I reached down to take hold of her wrist. I didn't realize how tight I was grabbing her, probably because all I could think about in that moment was getting her safe.

Baby's P.O.V.-

"You idiot!" Mr. Turtle shouted at the top of his lungs. I then felt a sharp squeeze on my wrist, making me wince a little. I didn't have to move or do anything; he just plucked me up effortlessly and plopped me down back on the rooftop. Well, I huffed still trembling a little. I'm back on the roof….. My wrist still ached from how tight he squeezed it.

Mr. Turtle, as I dubbed him until further notice, took a few deep breaths before shooting me the most unimpressed, enraged glare. "What were you thinking?! How stupid do you have to be to climb a broken rusty ladder?!" "I….. I didn't know it was broken…" That was… a dumb thing to say. I mean it's true but still, that's the first thing I say to him? Even I wasn't impressed. Mr. Turtle frowned and crossed his arms. "Why didn't you just wait for me?" "How was I supposed to know that you'd come back for me? You have your dagger back," I waved my hand. "It's not a dagger, it's a sai," he growled. Dagger, sai; what's the difference to someone like me?

I got up to my feet and looked at him straight on. He was buff, at least from what I could tell, and relatively handsome… if you're into turtles. But his most distinct feature was his temper; I could read his personality just by his stance. He had a hot temper which probably went off frequently. Well, we were total opposites in that regard. I'm the type of girl who meditates and takes two-hour baths. Like he saw with the thugs back there, I don't fight; I run. And look at me, why shouldn't I? I'm a pretty good runner when I want to be. Either way, I knew his and my personalities would clash- clash all the way. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not but judging that I was up on a roof now thanks to him, I'd say not.

Mr. Turtle watched as I let out a small, surrendering sigh. Well, no way I'm gonna make him take me down; best to appeal to his humane side. Heh, turtle- humane; little joke there. I looked at him with the most pleading eyes I could muster. "Please, Mr. Turtle….." "Mr. Turtle?" He growled again. "Ok, fine," I let out an exasperated sigh. "What is your name?" "Like I'd tell you." Then what do you expect me to call you? Have you really thought out the logistics of your argument? "Well, since you won't tell me, will Mr. Turtle work for the time being?" "No." No? Seriously, no? How old was he- five? I had to admit, this guy was getting under my skin.

"Then how 'bout Red?" "Red?" His eyebrow lifted, not in annoyance but curiosity. "Your mask," I pointed up to wear it would be on my head. "It's red." He mowed over it for a minute before giving a single nod. "Alright, Red's fine." Ok, good! Progress. "Red it is then. So Red, uh… would you mind bringing me back down?" "What else did you think I was up here for?" Oh, I don't know; to insult me, my fun of me, maybe even hurt me. Who knows. Red must have taken my silence as a que since he gave a small grunt and came over to me. He scooped me up in his arms like a bride again and went to the ledge of the roof. Then he gave me a look. "Hold on."

Slowly, I wrapped my arms around his neck. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that he was blushing a little; he certainly wouldn't look me in the eye after that. He hopped down in a matter of seconds, me clinging to him afraid the whole way. When we reached the street, Red waited until I retracted my arms before practically dropping me onto the concrete. Pain suddenly surged through my butt and legs; my eyes shot wide open in surprise. Red smirked and folded his arms over his shell; I think he does that a lot. He actually enjoys seeing me in pain? What a jerk! Well, now that I'm down safe and sound, I can leave and never speak to him again- good plan.

Wincing, I got up and turned to face him. "Well, thank you Red. Thank you for saving me from those jerks earlier and getting me down safely." Even though you're the one who put me up there. Much to my surprise, he flinched as I turned to leave. "Wait, you're going?" He sounded as surprised as he looked. "Uh, yes?" Why was he asking me this? I inwardly rolled my eyes so hard at the sudden firmness in his face, like he thought of something sour.

"You better not tell anyone about me." I think he was trying to sound threatening but it came off as more douche-baggy than anything. "I won't," I responded quickly. "I mean it!" "I won't! I promise." His muscles relaxed and while he didn't verbally say that he believed me, his body language did. "Good, cause if you do, I'll find you." Does he realize how stockerish that sounds? And what would he do once he "found" me? Gab one of his sai through me? For some reason, I just didn't find his warning all that intimidating. Sure, I was a little afraid of him but nothing serious. Without warning, I spun around really to leave.

"I promise I won't tell anyone." Red watched as I started to walk away. But before I left, I sent him one last grin over my shoulder. "See ya, Red." Hopefully not but I wanted to end on a good note, just in case I ever did see him again. Better to have someone like him as a friend than an enemy, though I doubted that we'd ever be friends. I took off down the street, not looking back once. I didn't need to- I'd remember him for a long time to come without burning his image inside my mind. You don't forget someone like Red…. Something, I had to mentally correct myself; Red wasn't human. He wasn't….. Huh, I gave my head a little shake. Weird, I almost forgot that he was a turtle near the end, as bizarre as that sounds. And yes, it did sound bizarre, even to me.

Raphael's P.O.V.-

This is stupid, my mind kept repeating. I initially was just gonna go straight back to the lair but… I found myself trailing behind her. Don't ask me why? I had no idea. I knew it was idiotic to shadow a human girl, not to mention embarrassing; someone might get the wrong idea if they saw. Still… My eyes kept scrolling back to her on their own accord. Maybe I just wanted to make sure she got home alright. It wasn't the safest area after all.

She obviously wasn't used to being followed since she didn't look back once; it's like she was unaware that I was there concealed in the shadows. What a moron, I smirked to myself. No wonder she ran into the Purple Dragon; she's totally unaware of her surroundings! Feeling more like an escort- albeit a secret one- than a stocker, I followed her for a couple of blocks until she stopped in front of this sub shop. Wait, I know this area. Yeah! This is where Murakami-san's noodle shop is. I blinked in surprise to find that the building she approached was right beside his restaurant.

My heart suddenly froze when she checked over her shoulder for a second. Crap! Did she see me? Probably not since she turned back to the door, opening it with a key. Huh, so this is where she lives? About time someone leased out that place. She must be living with someone; likely a parent or guardian. I observed her go inside, shut the door, and lock it behind her. Well at least she takes her safety into account some of the time, I rolled my eyes.

I didn't realize how engrossed I was until my T-phone interrupted my train of thought. I almost flinched at the unexpected ringing. Pulling it out, I saw Leo's face and number on the screen. Great, just what I need. "Yeah?" I answered, not taking my eyes off the girl who was currently taking off her jacket and getting a drink of water. "Hey Raph. How's patrol going?" "Boring." "You didn't see any Kraang, Foot Clan, or Purple Dragons?" "Nope; saw nothing. It's been a pretty dull night." "Alright, same here; we haven't seen anything either. We're gonna head back to the lair now." "Kay, I'm on my way." I then hung up and put my phone away. I didn't move until she was upstairs and what I guested to be her room's light was on. She shut the window, locked it, and then shut the curtain. That was my que to go which I did, trying to ignore the burning sensation still radiating throughout my cheeks.


	3. First Day of School

"I can't believe it! You didn't get my Taco Bell!" I rolled my eyes for what felt like the millionth time that morning. "You had one job, baby niece; one job!" "I told you already, uncle. I got you tacos, I just…. lost them." "How do you lose a bag of tacos? It's Taco Bell takeout; not an octopus." "Why would I lose an octo-… oh never mind," I set down the box full of bread and turned to face my disappointed uncle. "I promise to make sure your tacos make it home next time." "What if I'm in the mood for Ben and Jerrys?" "Then I'll get you Ben and Jerrys," a grin crossed my lips, which he mirrored. "Ok, you're back in my good books." "I was in your bad books?"

Uncle and I started preparations for opening up the shop this week. We woke up, ate a megger breakfast, and set to work setting up the shop downstairs; the living space was upstairs. After carting around ten boxes or so from a delivery truck, I went to get ready for my first day of school. "You're going where now?" Uncle hollered from behind the counter where he was organizing cooking supplies. "School! It's my first day today." "Oh right! That's a thing; you're still like a mini-human according to the government." "Minor," I came down the stairs. "I'm a minor, uncle. And only for one more year." "Whatever you say. Have a good day at hell school." "High school." "That's what I said!" Rolling my eyes, I came over to give him a goodbye kiss on the cheek.

"I'll come straight home at three. Remember, if the embassy calls, our passports and visas are in my desk drawer." "Why can't I hold onto them?!" "Because these are the replacements from the ones you lost in Spain. I'll be back." "Alright, have fun; don't break too many rules." "I won't! Love you long time!" I dashed out the front door. "Love you longer!" He called out before the door slammed shut behind me.

I'll be honest, my school was the scuzziest, most penitentiary-like institution I'd ever seen. It was a public school, which was fine; I had nothing against public schools. But the building was old and made of brick. And if you can believe it, inside were actual metal detectors. What were they searching for? Switch-blades? Judging by the way some of these "characters" looked, that actually seemed plausible.

There was no school uniform, which freaked me right the hell out. What was I supposed to wear? Was there a dress code for normal street clothes? Some girls had really short skirts on while some guys wore ripped shirts with skulls on them. Really? Who's gonna take you seriously in that? This is a school, not a teenage daycare. With a deep breath in, I climbed the steps up to the building which resembled too much like a jail in my eyes. It was full of students talking and laughing, with a lot of people's attentions glued onto their phones. Yeah, cause that's healthy. For the most part, people largely ignored me as I manoeuvred my way through the crowds, though I did get a few side-glances my way.

The principle had a nasty habit of never actually being at the school itself, so his representative was one Vice Principle Grinds. Alrighty then. Opening the door, I popped my head into the main office. The secretary looked overwork by the way she was sifting through papers and files, with a consistent stream of paper spewing out from the printer. "Yes dear?" Her attention finally turned to me.

"Uh, hi. I'm a new student here; my uncle registered me before we moved." "Moved…? Oh yes! You're the foreign girl, right! Well, welcome to Templeton High School. You'll have to fill out some forms." "Already got them," I pulled out a pile of completed paperwork from my bag. "Uh, please ignore the notes for sub ideas in the margins," my cheeks blushed a little as she scanned them over.

"Baby Zilla?" The lady read out loud. "Is that your real name?" "Ah, yes." "Oh, I'm sorry, dear! I didn't mean to…." "It's ok. I get asked that fifty times every day." Every friken' day. "Well, a Zilla girl. We've never had a relative of a rock star here before." I noticed this twinkle spark in the corner of her eyes; that happened with a lot of women when discussing my uncle. "I was a big fan of your uncle back in the day. Tell me, is Rock still single…. I mean is he healthy and well?" "Uhhhhhhhhhhh….."

" _Hi uncle! I'm just calling to say that we landed safely; the trip went without a hitch." "Hey, that's great news, baby-cakes!" My uncle said in his usual loud, Rock Zilla voice over the phone. "Guess what?! We're currently in the most haunted house in Britain right now shooting a new music video! Now if only there was someone around to help me unload the equipment." "Uh, uncle; I don't think…." "Hey, there's someone! Hey mister!" "Uncle…." "Whoa, check it out Skunk! You can totally see right through this guy!... Hey, hey wait, what are you… Hey! My arm isn't supposed to bend that way! Whoa, ow! Dude, ouch! My guitar-playing hand!"_

"He's uh, great," I forced a smile. "That's wonderful news! Bet he's missing you though." "Oh, he's fine. We'll see each other at Christmas and besides, he's working on a…. new music video." "Fantastic! Well, Miss Zilla, your paperwork all seems to be in order. Here's your class schedule and a list of textbooks you'll need for the year." "Thank you," I took the aforementioned material, only to find that I couldn't read my schedule at all. "Um, ma'am? Where am I supposed to go now?" "Oh why to homeroom, darling. Room 014 on the third floor."

Homeroom- what's homeroom? Is that where we're supposed to report to everyday? Seems overly complicated. I followed the signs on the walls to my directed classroom. Everyone was already seated inside making it extra awkward when I opened the door. The teacher, who was a middle-aged man, turned to me in curiosity. "Yes?" "H-hi! I'm new here; I think this is my homeroom." "New? Oh yes! You're the Zilla girl!" This set the room a buzz. How do so many people my age know who my uncle is?

The teacher, Mr. Besser, motioned for me to come in. Without a word, I showed him my timetable which I guess he could read. He gave an affirmation nod. "Right! You're in the right place, B-Baby?!" He sounded so awkward reading my name that even I cringed. Everyone in the classroom burst out laughing. "Uh, is your name really um….." "Yes, my name is Baby," I frowned slightly. Gees, twice in the span of ten minutes. "Haha, you sure you're old enough for high school, sweetheart?" One of the rougher-looking guys remarked. "She looks like a baby to me," another added. "Yeah, the hot kind."

"Alright, enough!" Mr. Besser gave the whole class one of those "looks". "Welcome to our class, Ba-… er, Ms. Zilla. We're happy to have you." "Sure we are." "Mr. Rogers!" Mr. Besser shot him a glare before clearing his throat. "Please, have a seat next to um…. Ah! Next to Ms. O'Neil over there by the window." "Thank you," I went to the desk next to this red head girl in a yellow shirt. She grinned up at me which I returned. "I'm counting on you, Ms. O'Neil, to make our new student get acquainted with the school." "Yes sir," she said and we smiled at each other again.

April O'Neil- yeah, she was pretty cool. From the start of homeroom that first day, we stuck together until the end- minus that one differing class we had. She was short, spunky but not in the over-the-top way my uncles were, and had just the right amount of sass. And also like me, she didn't have many friends at the school. "Is Rock Zilla really your uncle?" "Yeah. Somehow, I didn't inherent his musical talents." She laughed. "I surprised you know who he is, to be honest." "My dad's really into rock and roll music; he's a huge Rock Zilla fan." "I also hear that a lot," it was my turn to laugh.

"So, I don't get it. Why would someone with a family like yours come to a school like this?" April took a bite of her sandwich. "Well, I always wanted to go to public school; even just for a year or so. But I wasn't expecting…. this." "What? You mean old, broken down, paint-falling-off-the-walls?" "Haha, exactly." "Well, I guess it's not the worst high school in the world," she glanced around unsure of her own statement. "Could always be worse," I shrugged. "Ain't that the truth," she took another bite.

"What about you? What's your story?" "Me? Oh, uh… well, I've always lived here. I lost my mom when I was eight….." "Oh, I'm sorry." "Don't be," she flashed a sad little smile. "It was a long time ago. Now it's just me and my dad; I stayed with my aunt for a while last year but things are back to normal now." "Why? Did your dad leave for business or something?" "You…. could say that," her eyes scrolled down as if to be remembering something unpleasant.

I didn't say anything for a while after that; I think we were both thinking about things. But eventually I turned to her. "Hey, do you like Japanese food?" "Huh?" "Our neighbour runs this Japanese restaurant. I'd invite you for a sub but the shop's not set up just yet. But our neighbour, Mr. Murakami, is really nice; I bet he makes great food too…. minus pizza gyoza." "Murakami-san? You're neighbours with Murakami-san?" "Uh, yes? Have you been to his restaurant before?"

But April didn't answer right away; she just stared off into space. Though I could detect the faintest hint of concern in her expression. Why would she be worried? What's there to worry about? Is she afraid she'll offend me if she says he makes lousy food or something? All my thoughts ran dry when she suddenly grinned back up at me. "Yeah, I've eaten there before and makes amazing grub! You have to try this thing called "pizza gyoza"." "Yeeeeeeeeah, he brought some over on the night we moved; not my cup of tea." "Really?! But it's so yummy! I admit I was sceptical at first but when I tried it, it blew my mind." "I don't eat pizza," I replied. "You…. don't eat pizza?" Then she laughed; a sort of distorted laugh. "What planet did you come from?" And I gave her shoulder a playful shove. "Alright, no pizza gyoza. But he makes a mean ramen." "That'll work."

April and I parted ways at three. She said she had to meet some friends and I had to go home to help uncle with the shop. To my dismay but not surprise, little had been done by the time I got back. "Hello uncle," I crossed the threshold only to find him lying asleep on the counter. He immediately sprang up at the sound of my unexpected voice. "Whoa! Where am I?! What's gonna on?!" "You were asleep, uncle," I set my bag off to the side. "I was?" He scanned himself over. "So I was. And hey! What are you doing home? I thought you were going to school." "I did. It's after three." "Three AM?" "Three PM." "Oh… Then what am I doing asleep on the counter?!" "You probably nodded off when you were doing inventory or something."

Like I was the world's best mind-reader, uncle picked up the half filled in clipboard off the floor. Scanning it over, his head nodded. "Oh yeah! I forgot I was supposed to be counting and writing and stuff….." "Here," I took it from his hands and found a nearby pencil. "I'll do the inventory; you go deal with the boxes in the back." "Thanks, baby niece. By the way, how was your first day of school?" "It was good! Nothing too unusual." "Did everyone freak out that Rock Zilla is your uncle?" "No," I rolled my eyes. "Well, a few people but nothing to outrageous. I made a friend." "Oh! Is it a guy?" "Why would that matter?" I frowned. "You know what your uncle said before we moved."

" _Are you sure you're alright with me going to public school? I thought you wanted me to get into an elite university." "And you will! But first, you need to experience the raw chaos that is "high school"!" My uncle said in his over-dramatic tone again. "Listen, I'll pay for any adult school you want…." "University," I corrected. "That's what I said!" Boy, did that sound familiar. "But only after you attend….. dun, dun, dun! Public school!" "But why?" "Because! These are the years which you'll blossom from a young kid to a consenting adult. And then you'll be a chick-magnet, just like your uncle! We Zilla boys have to revel in all that raw testosterone pulsing through our veins. And no, before you ask, sorry dude; I can't help you on that. We got dominant genes." "I'm a girl!" A slight pause. "Oh, well in that case, it'll give you a change to have a few flings before college."_

"I'd rather not remember that conversation," I groaned inwardly. Why do all my relatives have to act so cartoonishly? It's not like this was a tv show or fanfiction or anything. "My point still stands! You're going to public school to get some guy-time." "No, I'm going to public school- for one year- so that I might expand my perspective and intellect." "See? No dude thinks that kind of talk is sexy," uncle gave me an unimpressed gaze. "Look, she is a very nice girl whom I'd like to get to know better. Which brings up my second point. Would it be ok with you if I had dinner with her at Mr. Murakami's tonight?"

"What?" Uncle scrambled, after falling off the counter, to his feet. "But I thought we were going to have Taco Bell! I found one just six miles from here." "As…. tempting as that sounds, I'd really like to have dinner with April." "Alright, but we're doing tacos tomorrow night!" He eyed me very firmly; he looked so serious that I couldn't stop myself from laughing. "Deal." 


	4. Dinner at Mr Murakami's

Raphael's P.O.V.-

I didn't plan on thinking of her again; I didn't want to! It seemed like an utter waste of time, just like me following her home; she was fine! She didn't need me to make sure that she arrived ok. So… why did I then? Frustratingly, I smashed my fist into the punching bag with all the force I could muster. Frustrating, that's the way to describe it; it was totally frustrating! She was a god damn distraction. And I couldn't control it either.

Her image would pop up in my mind at the most random of times. When I was training with the others, reading comics, trying to sleep- bam! There she was; her face with that stupid, stupid smile. Each and every time I'd fumble for just a second and I don't know why! Why! Seriously! She's just a human girl; granted an attractive one but still! I wasn't an idiot, I'd seen the way April turned Donnie into putty whenever she's around. This was completely different however; I didn't like her! I didn't even know her name; how could I have a crush on someone I didn't know?

No! This wasn't a crush; I was too smart for to give in to such useless teenage hormones. Yeah, hormones- that's it. I just thought of her unconsciously because…. uh, because I found her insufferably annoying. Of course she was annoying! She constantly distracted me from whatever I'm doing with no consent on my part! Ugh! I hope I never see her again! The next two punches were particularly satisfying.

You-know-who only swished through my mind twice more before that evening. I had just finished my comic-book, interruption-free, when Leo announced that it was time for patrol. Finally, I set my book off to the side and leapt to my feet enthusiastically. Maybe I'll run into some more Purple Dragons if I'm lucky; I could use another fight. Donnie and Mikey weren't so fervent with excitement.

"Ah, Leo," Donnie rubbed his hand on the back of his neck. "We've been patrolling solo now for a whole week and still found nothing. What's the point?" "I agree!" Mikey's hand shot up in the air. "I vote we take the night off!" "I didn't say that," Donnie peered at him through the corner of his eye. "Come on, Donnie!" A mischievous grin rolled over Mikey's green lips. "Wouldn't you like to spend a night with April?" Oooooh, playing the big cards.

"April!" Donnie whispered as his cheeks immediately turned a dumb pink. Sissy. "I would love to spend time with April but she's having dinner with a friend tonight," his gaze lowered in slight disappointment. "Oh! Well we can still take the night off!" "Mikey," Leo's eyes rolled tiredly. "Awe but Leo! Patrolling alone is so boooooooring!" Our youngest brother whined. "I don't know," I finally offered my two-cents. "I kinda like the solo thing," my arms folded in front of my shell. "Well I don't! It's no fun going out by myself."

"Mikey may have a point," Donnie's assertion caught all of us off guard, including Mikey himself. "I do?!" "Our patrols haven't been prolific. There's got to be a better way to locate the Kraang and Foot Clan besides what we're doing. What's the point in continuing to do the same thing when we're not getting anywhere?" I was not expecting this and judging by the look on Leo's face, neither was he. Leo put one hand on his hip and tilted his stance slightly. "So what do you suggest we do then?"

Donnie shrugged. "I could go to my lab and try to detect any Kraang activity in the surrounding area using my new ninth-addition upgraded software complete with….." "Ok, ok, I get it," Leo waved a hand in the air. "And what should we do?" "Uh, take the night off?" Mikey and I looked at Leo, who considered it for a moment. He then let out a defeated sigh. "Ok." "Alright!" Mikey's fist shot into the air. I shot him a look as his arm suddenly draped over my shoulder. "Free night! We can do whatever we want!" "Says you," I shoved him.

Leo watched us before shaking his head. "Well, since we're not going out on patrol, I guess we could go get something to eat?" "Food?!" Mikey's eyes lit up in anticipated delight. "Yeah, I don't see why not…." "Awesome! I vote pizza gyoza!" Without warning, her face flashed through my mind again. Damn it! I inwardly winced in irritation. Why now?! Oh, well maybe because she lives next door to Murakami-san's…

"Yeah," I folded my arms again and gave a light nod in agreement. "I'm good with pizza gyoza." "Really?" Leo blinked at me in surprise. "Sure." "A-alright, pizza gyoza it is. Hey Donnie! We're going to Murakami-san's! Want us to bring you back some take-out?" Our oh-so-righteous leader hollered down the hall to Donnie's lab. "Yes!" Echoed back to the den. "Ok!" He turned back to face us with a smile. "Let's go."

Baby's P.O.V.-

"I'm going over to Mr. Murakami's for dinner now," I said coming down the stairs into the shop part of the building. "Great! I'll get my coat!" "Uh, uncle; this was supposed to be dinner just with me and April." "I know, baby niece," he joined me at the front door, trying- and failing- to zip up his jacket. "I'm just escorting you." "It's right next door," my lips cracked a smile. "Yeah, but after I escort you, I'm gonna go downtown. They're having polka festival; complete with a yodeling competition!" "Does uncle Rock know that you listen to that sort of music?" "He wouldn't understand," his hand gave a dismissing wave. "My brother may be good with an electric guitar, but it takes real musical talent to master the accordion." "Uh…. huh," he took my arm in his and held the door open for me. "Whatever you say, uncle."

We went next door to Mr. Murakami's restaurant. It was empty, making me nervous about our own sub shop's future. Uncle didn't seem to notice though; he just burst the door open and brought me inside. Correction- it was empty minus April. She was sitting at the counter with a cup of tea in front of her. She perked up at our entrance and I greeted her with a friendly smile. "Hi, April." "Hi, Baby." "Is this the friend you told me about? She's got red hair, just like the Scots!" "Uncle! Uh… April, this is my uncle; Uncle, April O'Neil."

"Enchantee mademoiselle," I watched in horror as uncle lifted her hand up for a peck. "H-hello! Nice to meet you, Mr. Zilla." "Please! Mr. Zilla is my great, great grandfather. Call me uncle!" "You're "my" uncle," my eyes rolled. "I can call you by your first name if you want," April offered kindly. "Ah!" She flinched at uncle's sudden reaction. "We never speak of my…" A quick glance around. "First name. Trust me, there are worse things to be named than "Rock" or "Baby". Just call me uncle." "A-alright, uncle it is." "Oh uncle," I sighed giving my head a little shake.

"So! What's on the menu for you girls tonight? Sushi? Those little raw squid dishes?" "I hope not," I laughed. "Zilla-san! Baby-chan!" We all turned to see Mr. Murakami come in from the back room. "Murakami! My Japanese man!" "Good evening, Mr. Murakami. Thanks for having us again," I flashed a grin which I knew he couldn't see but it was the thought of the jester. He gave a nod my way, smiling. "Welcome! I'm glad to have you." "I'm sure you'll feed my baby niece and Red here well," uncle patted his shoulder. "I will, and for you, Zilla-san," the kind gentleman held up a takeout bag. "Pizza gyoza to go." "Whoa, seriously?!" Needless to say, uncle was elated. "You're the dude, Murakami! I'll eat these on the way to the polka-fest!" "Polka-fest?" April's eyebrow rose. "Don't ask," I simply replied.

Takeout bag in hand, uncle came over to give me a big hug. "Have a good time, baby niece. Don't be home too late; what time did we agree on? One?" "Eleven-thirty." "That'll work! Don't come back later, unless you have food; that'll serve as an excuse," he kissed my forehead. "A+ parenting," I grinned. "Love you long time." "Love you longer! See ya, Murakami! Nice meeting you, Red!" Uncle let the door slam on his way out. No one said anything for a minute until April smiled at me. "I like your uncle." "So I do," I agreed looking back at her.

Mr. Murakami gave us each menus and we mowed over them together. April decided on miso ramen while I got this really good pork ramen- miso-free. Our orders were quickly prepared; a lot faster than we took eating them. We talked about everything; school, our childhoods, our likes and dislikes, hopes for the future, and so on. But being teenage girls of fairly decent looks, one subject was enviably going to come up. That's right, half way through the meal we started talking about "boys". It all started when April asked me if I'd ever had a boyfriend before.

Choking down the bite of noodles in my mouth, I couldn't stop myself from bursting out in a fit of laughter. "Not recently but I did have a boyfriend in second grade- one Luvimere Wormchuck." "Luvimere Wormchuck?!" April also broke into a laughing fit. "And I thought "Rock" was a bad name! No offence." "None taken. Yes, Luvimere was my first- and last- romance. What about you? Any boys that you like?" "Well…." She suddenly grew all timid and reluctant; guess the humor from Luvimere Wormchuck's unfortunate name had dissipated. April twitted her thumbs a little, glancing down at her hands.

"It's kinda complicated. There's this… boy who has like the biggest crush on me; like massive." "And? Do you like him?" "Kind of," she gave a slight shrug. "But… I don't know. It's weird….." "Why? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." "Let's just say we're from different worlds," she grinned up at me. "What about you? Meet any guys you like yet?" "Ah well….. Mmmmm, it's also complicated," my lips curled into an awkward smile.

"I met this…. guy the other night." "Oh?! Hot?" "Uh, yes… in a way. But we didn't get on well; I don't think he likes me very much." "Oh, well then forget him!" Her hand waved in the air dismissively. "No need to waste your time on guys who don't dig you." "I guess that's right. Besides, I don't think I'll ever see him again," my eyes slowly drifted back to my ramen thoughtfully. "His loss," April then picked up her bowl to sip up her broth.

Raphael's P.O.V.-

"Pizza gyoza! Pizza gyoza! Pizza gyoza!" Mikey cheered the way- the whole damn way. "Mikey!" Leo shot him an irritated glare. We hoped from rooftop to rooftop, making our way steadily to the familiar noodle shop. I didn't say much during the trip, my eyes going between my youngest brother and building ahead of us. We paused on the building opposite Murakami-san's restaurant to check before heading down. But I wasn't looking at his place at first. My attention was only diverted from a certain someone's house when I registered Leo's voice calling to me. "Raph?" Without a word, I blinked at him half-surprised, then firming up my expression when I saw the slight confusion in his face.

Mikey was the first to see them, or rather "her". "Look, dudes! It's April!" He pointed down to the front window. "Hey yeah. She's here too?" Leo asked. "Who's that with her?" That's when I looked for the first time and my heart skipped a beat. I didn't expect her to be at Murakami's place! It looked like she was eating with April; wait, she knew April? How'd that happen? My brothers didn't seem so puzzled by her appearance.

"She looks like one of April's friends." "She's pretty!" I side-glared Mikey from the corner of my eyes, though I'm not sure why. She was pretty- that was more a statement of fact than anything. Getting a second look at her, this time in actual light, I realized just how good-looking she was…. I gave myself a hard, swift mental kick. Stupid, useless hormones! Thinking things without my consent; no one said you'd lose control over your brain when you become a teenager. I did perk up though, as did Leo, when Mikey stepped up on the ledge to jump down.

"What are you doing?!" I demanded from behind. "I'm going to say hi," he said in the most innocent way imaginable. "Dude, you can't go down there." "Raph's right." "Why not? She's friends with April." "That doesn't mean she'll automatically be friends with you." "How come?" "Cause you're a big, green, mutant turtle," Leo answered. I don't know why but for some reason, this caught me off guard. Sure, I didn't think Mikey should just go approach her like that but I didn't say it had anything to do with him being a turtle… But yeah, I guess Leo's right…. That left a sour taste in my mouth that I couldn't swallow down.

"So?" "So?! You'll freak her out, that's what." "No, I won't! She's April's pal, which means she's open-minded." "No, it doesn't," Leo gripped his head in mental agony. "Sure it does! April wouldn't be friends with someone who…..!" They were interrupted by the sound of a trash can knocking over. We all glanced down to see- much to my horror- three Purple Dragon opening the shop door. And not just any Purple Dragon; the same three from the other night. We observed anxiously as they started roaming through the place, alarming April and terrifying the girl. "You!" Both she and Hoogie yelled, pointing fingers at each other. This was followed by screaming, crashes, and cries.

Leo hesitated, like a moron. "Alright, let's go down there and….." But I wasn't paying attention to his idiotic plan; my full concentration was on her- watching her through the window. It took roughly ten seconds for this conversation, this argument to occur in my brain. Why should I help her again? She's just some nobody human who happened to find my sai; she means nothing to me. I don't even know her name…..

My eyes grew as Hoogie threw one of the chairs in between him and "her" to the side. I felt something weird start to rise up inside of me- something I'd never felt before…. I couldn't quite explain it but it was something akin to panic surged with anger. Now, I knew what it was like to get mad; I've lost my temper countless times before but this…. This was a new and different kind of anger. I watched his long disgusting hand stretch out for her. A powerful kind of anger….

Before I even knew what I was doing, my body suddenly took on a will of its own. "Raph!" Leo gasped as I immediately leapt down to the street. Sai in hand, I burst through the already open door. Hoogie and the others instantly looked over their shoulders to see me standing there, glaring at the leader with this new kind of rage. "Raph!" April cried. "Red!" She also exclaimed, more in relief than surprise. "Ugh! Not you again!" Hoogie scowled.

I was immediately joined by my brothers, also bearing their arms. "There's more turtles?!" I heard her say. "You know them?!" April asked her in shock. "Do you?!" She sounded equally as dumbfounded. "Get out!" Leo ordered them, to zero affect. "Oh yeah?" Hoogie smirked, stupidly. "Make us!" More crashes and bangs; her scream echoed through the shop. "Murakami-san!" April, who was closer, ran over to the blind man's aid. He wasn't hurt from what I could see but he did look frazzled. She guided him to the back wall while our fight begun. I was so engaged that I neglected to keep track of "her" whereabouts for a second- just a second- and it was one of the worst seconds of my life.


	5. Blue and Red in the Subway

"You know them?!" "Do you?!" I don't know which was more shocking; April's awareness of his- or rather their- existence or that these were the same brutes from the previous night. And they looked just as upset to see the turtles as before. "Get out!" The one wearing a blue mask commanded in a very authoritative tone. He looked like Red, only a bit taller and leaner; he didn't have Red's muscles. But he still gave off this decisively dangerous air. "Oh yeah? Make us!" Hoogie fired back.

I winced, pressing my back up against the wall while they started attacking one another. There were three turtles in total; Red, the one in the blue mask, and one in an orange mask. They all had differing weapons and obviously knew how to use them. My first thoughts were of getting to Mr. Murakami before anything happened to him. April seemed to have the same idea as I heard her cry: "Murakami-san!" Summing up the courage to check to my side, I felt a wave of relief at the sight of her getting him out of the way. I have to get to them! That was my only thought as I started to shuffle down the side of the wall.

I must have moved to much because I suddenly felt this super tight grip on my arm. I didn't have time to look before I found myself yanked by this powerful force in front of me. Finally getting a glimpse, I saw Hoogie holding onto me; within seconds, his hand moved and his arm snaked around me. To my utter horror, I noticed the kitchen cleaver in his other hand; it didn't take a genius to realize this was a hostage situation. One of the turtles must have accidently pushed him in my direction and he saw an opportunity. And an opportunity he had.

"Baby!" April shrieked in sheer terror. "Hold it right there or I'll slice her!" I heard him order, instantly feeling the slick blade caress my neck right under my chin. Words cannot describe how scared I was in that moment. I was petrified that I couldn't move; I couldn't even think. The turtles all immediately stared at us with concerned expressions. To Blue's surprise though it seemed, Red was the first to set his weapons away. His hands rose in front of him a little to show vulnerability. "D-don't hurt her!" "Raph?" Blue sounded surprised, momentarily blinking at his brother. Red didn't answer; his eyes were locked onto us.

"R-red…." I finally managed to groan. "Red!" My hand outreached for him. "Shut up!" It instantly retracted at the violent shake Hoogie gave me. Red gasped and Blue took a step forward. "Stop!" The latter pleaded. "Stay back!" My eyes winced as Hoogie started to dig the knife's corner into me, breaking the skin. Their eyes grew in dread when a drop of blood rolled down my neck. "Y-you're hurting me…." I squeaked out barely. "That's the point, sugar," Hoogie smirked down at me. I felt like vomiting again at the feeling of his nose burying in my hair to soak in my "scent". "God, you smell so good…."

I didn't hear what he told the turtles next; my mind went into full survival mode. I had to escape; that's all I knew. I had to get out of this alive, somehow. At that moment, I noticed a pair of chopsticks on the table beside us. He must have not been paying close attention to me because I was able to reach out for them, with some effort of course. It took place in five seconds or so- it was fast. As soon as I got the chopsticks in my hand, I brought it back towards where I thought his eye might be. I must have hit the target because he suddenly yelped in pain, letting me go.

I didn't even look; the moment I was free, I ran- I ran faster than I ever had in my life. "Kill her!" I heard him yell from behind. "KILL HER!" "Now we're talkin'!" Lanky pulled out his switchblade, immediately chasing me out the door. Red followed immediately behind, leaving his brothers to deal with Hoogie and Big. Lanky could run faster than either of us anticipated though. He was so close on my heels that to escape him, I ran into the empty subway station down a couple of blocks.

It was barren, though all the lights were on. Only pausing momentarily to take off my shoes and throw them in the trash, I tiptoed down the stairs and into one of the platforms. I had to cover my mouth so to keep me from screaming when I heard Lanky approaching. He ran his blade against the white-washed wall as he walked- a slow, malicious walk. It was like he was actually enjoying this, treating it like some sick game; our own version of cat and mouse. "Come out, come out, wherever you are," he said in the sickest tone. It was clear that he wasn't like Hoogie; he wasn't in deflowering my body, he wanted to slice it up. The very thought almost made me cry; almost. But I knew I couldn't afford to have obscure vision right now.

"Don't worry, I ain't gonna hurt ya," Lanky chuckled under his breath. "Much." Oh god! I could hear him getting closer. So close in fact that I started to silently move through the platform, trembling the whole way. Oh god, please! Please, don't cry! Don't scream! I kept telling myself over and over again. I could practically feel him about to turn the corner onto my platform when a different sound echoed through the station. "What?! Turtle….?!" This was followed by a session of punching sounds- hard punches. I took this as my que to make a run for it down the other side.

Not worried about making noise anymore, I ran full-speed down the platform. Turning the corner, I bumped into something very hard; it sent me stumbling back a few steps. Opening my teary eyes, I saw none other than Blue standing there; he looked very nervous and frazzled. We stared at each other bewildered for a long minute until he eventually made a jester my way; his lifted his right hand up a little. I don't know why but in that moment, everything- the fear, the alarm, the pain- all came flooding back to me. I don't think he or I were ready for what happened next.

Tears starting to blur my vision, I ran at him with open arms. In seconds, I was clinging to him for what felt like dear life. It was only then that I allowed myself to cry- truly cry. Blue was so stunned that he didn't seem to know how to react at first. Judging by how red his face turned, I was willing to bet that this was the closest he'd ever been to a girl before. It didn't help either that my breasts were pressing right up against the front of his shell. But I didn't care; in that moment, I needed comfort- I needed to be comforted. I needed to be held by someone stronger than me; anyone, so long as they were strong. Strong enough to keep me safe.

My eyes did open in surprise when his arms wrapped tightly back around me. It took a minute- a very long minute- but Blue finally embraced me. He seemed awkward at first but quickly let the moment take over; he just held me like he was trying to make me feel better….. make me feel better. "It's ok; it's ok. You're safe now," he spoke in a soothing tone. I don't know why but this made me cling tighter to him. "It's ok," his eyes lowered a tad. "I won't let anything happen to you; you're safe." "R-really?" I pulled back so to look him in the eye for the first time. He looked at my crying face for a second before giving me the most reassuring smile.

Hand in hand, Blue led me out of the station. Red was on the end platform; I tried not to notice the blood spattered on him. His eyes widened when he saw us approaching from inside. "You! You're alright!" He came over to us before we even reached him. Blue quickly let go of my hand yet still stayed close to me. "Are you ok?" I knew he was addressing me by the way he eyes were locked solid onto mine. "Y-yes," I responded shakily. He didn't look to believe me and both his and Blue's eyes grew in horror at the sight of blood on my neck. I was so scared that I had completely forgotten about that cut. My hand rose to cover it. "I-it's nothing…"

"Where's Switchblade?" Blue then asked Red. "Taken care of," was the only answer he gave. Blue examined his brother's face for a second and then decided not press it further. I wasn't sure if he worried Red might have beaten Lanky too hard or not hard enough… "And the other two?" It was Red's turn to interrogate Blue, crossing his arms as per usual. "Don't worry. We won't be seeing them for a long time," Blue said with a mild hint of confidence. I kept looking between the two, not saying a word; my hand was balled up on my chest. They both suddenly turned back to me, seeming calmer now that the danger had actually disappeared. With a sigh, Blue started to move forward again. "Come on, let's get you home."


	6. Friends?

We walked back to Mr. Murakami's restaurant in silence at first. I think we all had a lot on our minds; I know I did. My gaze kept drifting from Red to Blue, affirming the realization that there was more than one mutant turtle in the city. How many else could there be? Just three? Fifty? Countless? Red eventually noticed me peering at him from the corner of my eye, which he probably wasn't expecting. "What?" he asked in a coarse way.

"I didn't know you weren't the only turtle here. How many of you are there?" "You weren't the only turtle?" Blue repeated, though he wasn't looking at me; his eyes were expressively on his brother. Red flinched the slightest and tore his eyes away. "Four; there are four of us," he answered in an utter. "And… are you all related?" "Y-yeah….." I didn't ask anything after that; the mood felt really tense. It wasn't a long walk to the shop. The turtles let me ascend the front steps, pausing momentarily to look at one another. "A pretty dull night, huh?" Blue asked Red, who didn't respond.

We entered the restaurant to find April and Mr. Murakami with Orange; Hoogie and Big were nowhere to be seen. They all immediately perked up at our arrival. "Baby!" "Baby-chan!" April and I practically ran into each other's arms, holding the other really tight. Mr. Murakami also joined us, smiling and placing his hand on my back. "Are you alright?!" April gasped like she was out of breath. "Y-yes!" I sounded equally breathless. Her eyes grew huge when she pulled back to see the blood on my neck; the wound was still open. My hand quickly covered it as I tried to force a grin. "I-it's nothing…." "Dude! You're alright!" Orange was the next to unexpectedly come over, smiling at me excitedly. Boy, did he look relieved.

"Thank you, my friends," Mr. Murakami said to the turtles. "Thank you for saving my shop and more importantly, rescuing Baby-chan," he motioned my way with his hand. "Baby?" Red smirked, folding his arms. "Your name is "Baby?" "Got a problem with that?" April spoke in my defence. This surprised me a little but I didn't intervene, just looked at the now slightly flustered Red. He didn't reply but Blue rubbed the back of his neck and gave a cute little smile. "It's a nice name," he offered. "For a tiny, helpless human," Red added under his breath.

After a sharp glare at his brother, Blue turned back to us. "Don't worry. I don't think they'll be coming around here anytime soon." "Do they…. do they come around often?" I asked in a frightened tone. Blue looked at me for a brief moment, then flashed a reassuring grin. "Not after tonight." "And if they ever do come back, we'll be here to save you!" Orange announced. He stuck out his hand to shake mine. "I'm Mikey! Your new friend!" "New friend?" Red's eyebrow rose. "Heck yeah! She knows about us now, we can be friends!" That's…. some sort of logic. "Besides! She's already friends with April; that's a bonus."

"You really….. know these guys?" I turned to April. She nodded. "Yeah… we kinda met off chance last year. Murakami-san knows them too." "Really?" He also gave a nod. "Wow…" I then turned back to the three mutant turtles. "Ooooooh! We're gonna have so much fun! I've always wanted a human friend!" Orange cheered with delight. "I'm a human!" April's hand went to her hip as she frowned. "I mean a different human…. You are a human, aren't you?" "Uh, yes?" What kind of question was that? Were there non-human humans wandering around the city?

Blue rolled his eyes and motioned for his brothers. "Alright, you guys; come on, we should go." "Really?" April, Orange, and I asked in unison. This surprised me a little, though I'm not sure why. The only ones who didn't look startled were Red and Mr. Murakami. The elderly Japanese man just went behind the counter while Red simply looked at us- or rather me. Within seconds, Mr. Murakami returned with a takeout box in each hand. "With my gratitude, pizza gyoza." "Pizza gyoza?!" A very happy Orange took both containers. "Thank you," Blue nodded respectfully to the elder, who grinned back. Then he turned to me.

"Will you be… alright now?" Blue seemed almost apprehensive to ask; embarrassed a little, for some reason. I merely nodded, taking care to keep my wound covered. Satisfied with this, he gave me one last look before turning to head for the door. "Come on, let's go home." "Awe! But I just met her!" "Baby's had a long night, Mikey. Give her some time to let this all… sink in." "Ugh! Fine!" After a dramatic eyeroll, Orange dragged his feet to trail his brother to the door. "See you soon, Baby! Bye April! Thanks again for the pizza gyoza, Murakami-san!" "Don't eat them all before we get back. Boy, did Donnie choose the wrong night to stay home," Blue and Orange exited the shop.

Red was the last to go; he just stared at me with a confused face, confused eyes. Then he made them tear themselves away from me, going to head out the front door. With one last check over his shoulder, he took off into the dark of night without a word. I didn't know what to think while April just grinned over at me with a mischievous look in her soulful eyes. "So? Red, huh?"


	7. One Year Later

" _Now, I want you to close your eyes. Close your eyes and try to envision your deepest desires, your greatest passions." "Mmmmmmm, pizza." "Mikey! Shhhhhh!" "Please, my sons. I want you to think of your motivations; concentrate on what makes you happy, truly happy." We all shut our eyes and took in a few deep breaths. I did something I didn't let my mind do much- I gave it free reign, I let it wander. My breathing got progressively slower as I felt my mind slip further and further away from my stream of steady consciousness._

 _Think about what make us happy, truly happy… Well, I knew what that was for me: a good fight, especially when I win. There's nothing I loved more than sparring with Leo- and wiping the floor with his smug face- and taking down the Kraang or some Purple Dragons. I went through a fight sequence in my head, where I came out the victor of course. Needless to say, I was doing my little victory dance with sai in hand, pumping my fists into the air. I was engrossed in the scene that I failed to realize that something was happening; something deep and profound. My consciousness was beginning to vanish into obscurity, leading to the deep, dark recesses of my brain, my heart which I never explored._

 _While I was celebrating, I started to notice the scenery around me morph into something else. It was still familiar to me, I was near the city's coast. But I had no personal attachment to it, so I couldn't fathom why my subconscious would bring me here. Sensei's words rang through my constant stream of thoughts again. This was supposed to be my deepest desires, my greatest passions… I don't know why but for some reason, I felt compelled to move forward. My motivations…. Slowly I walked down the barren road; I knew I was heading towards the water, though I still had no idea why I felt the urge to go…. Why I felt the sudden need to…_

 _I was supposed to be thinking of something else, I think; something that motivated me….. I entered a part of the road where there were trees with thin, long, low hanging branches; each blooming with fresh white flowers. I don't understand, what does any of this have to do with me? I could hear the waves in the distance; the air felt like was getting thicker around me for some unforeseeable reason. How was this what made me happy? Coming through the branches, I came out onto the beach with large, flat, soft, black rocks. My eyes grew as something up ahead caught my attention; I felt my heart come to a freezing halt. What made me happy….. Someone was sitting out on one of the rocks. Truly happy…._

 _The someone resting on the rocks was a girl; she had long hair which flowed in the salty breeze out behind her. She wasn't looking at me right away, she was gazing out at the sea. For those first few seconds, I felt like I forgot how to breathe. Baby! My eyes grew as wide as they possibly could. W-Why is she here? I don't… I don't get it! After staring out at the water for a long moment, every vein- every atom- in my body froze as her deep, deep eyes drifted back to me. She looked at me from over her shoulder; a look which I'll never forgot, even if I tried. W-why….. why is she looking at me that way?_

 _I felt my muscles start to tense; so tense that it almost hurt. Everything came to a halt when her lips parted a little_. "Raphael." _Holy crap! I didn't know my name could sound like that. I'd heard my name said a billion times in my life but it's never sounded like that before; not like when she said it._ _How come? Where'd she learn how to say it so damn perfect? I don't get it! Why all of a sudden is she here? Where did she come from?! I was just sitting here, minding my own business until bam! There she was! My eyes locked onto hers, lowering slightly… There she was, and it made me so happy….._

"AHHHHHHH!" I shrieked jumping to my feet. Everyone opened their eyes and looked at me like I was crazy. "Raph? You ok there?" Leo asked in a slightly concerned, confused tone. "Y-yeah!" Holy hell and a half! What the hell was that?! I blinked several times, trying to regain full control of my mind again. What did I just think?! I didn't give myself permission to fantasize that! Wait, it wasn't a fantasy! All fantasies have some grounding in reality; there was nothing about that which I believed. S-sure, I liked Baby… a-as a friend, just a friend. I adamantly refused to be a love-sick, hormone-overthrown teenager; definitely not going to happen. I-I mean it's not like I loved her or anything… No way! Who cares if she can say my name like no one else; that's just coincidence. There was no way I was in love; no way!


	8. First Day of School (again)

I woke as my alarm went off an hour and a half before I had to get up. This was always my least favorite time of the day- being suddenly woken up by that incessant beeping. So, to rectify the situation, I set my alarm early just so I could turn it off and go back to sleep. An hour and a half later, the familiar beeping woke me up a second time and I got out of bed.

It was my first day of my senior year. Uncle and I had been living in the sub shop for a year today. A lot had happened in that year: I met the turtles and eventually their master, Splinter, learned about the Kraang and Shredder, and became fast friends with the aforementioned mutant turtles. April and I were pretty close now too. Thanks to Donatello hacking into the school's computer, we "miraculously" had all the same classes in the same time slots this year. It helped the bitterness that was starting our senior year; neither April nor I were particularly excited about it. But I'll admit, now that it was actually the first day of school, I was a little enthusiastic.

Uncle was already up- he was an early riser…. somehow. He was busy cooking something behind the counter by the time I came downstairs. I took a shower, brushed my hair, got dressed, and grabbed my backpack. "Good morning, baby niece!" He greeted me with his usual overly-giddy tone. "Morning, uncle." "Happy first day of senior year!" With a squeal, he spun around to face me. "Look at you, all grown up. Ah, you make me so proud!" "Thank you, uncle," this made me smile since I know he was being sincere. "Let me take a picture for your uncle Rock and Skunk!" Ok, that might be a little overboard. "Did you call him back last night?" "Uhhhhhhhh….."

" _Hi uncle! Sorry I missed your call; I was out with…" "Hey, babycakes! Great to hear from ya! I'm at the dentist right now!" "A-at the dentist?" "Yeah! They got me in one of those cool astronaut chairs; you know, the ones that go up and down?" "Uh, uncle? Do you think it's a good idea to be talking on the phone while you're….." "Ah! Don't you worry, sweetheart! Your uncle's got perfect pearly whites." "Alright, Mr. Zilla; if you could just open up for me and let me have a look at your teeth," I heard the doctor say in the background. This was followed by the sound of a dentist drill. "Nah, my main interest isn't the teeth. It's all about the tongue, baby!" I had to pull my phone away from my ear as uncle let out the loudest scream in pain ever._

"Y-yes, I called uncle back….. I don't think he'll be talking for a while though." "That's good! Hey, guess what I made you for breakfast? One of my famous bacon and egg sandwich! Sans the eggs, extra bacon; just how you like it." "Thanks, uncle!" I took it and went to the front door. "Will L, R, D, and M come to hang out here tonight?" "If it's ok with you." "Sure it is! I love those guys and they love my subs, which makes me love them even more!" "Ok then. I'll come straight home after school." "Good girl," he nodded. "Now come give your uncle a kiss good bye." Smiling, we wrapped our arms around each other and I gave him a peck on the cheek. "Have a good day at school, baby niece," uncle said while still holding me. "Love you long time." "Love you longer."

April met me in front of the school building; though I didn't like it at first, it had grown on me over time. She greeted me with a grin. "Well hello, stranger." "Hi April," I mirrored her grin. "Excited to be a senior this year?" "Ugh," her eyes rolled. "It never ends! Summer went by way to fast." "We spent practically every day at the lair." "I did; you went off to visit your uncle Rock." "For only like two weeks!" "Two weeks too long," she chuckled. "You should have seen how fidgety Raph got; even Leo was getting ansy." "Really? Cause when I got home, Raphael said that he barely noticed I was gone." "Come on; you think Raph would say out loud that he "missed you"?" My eyes scrolled off a little into nowhere. "No…" "Leo and Mikey on the other hand…." She gazed up as we climbed the steps. "Really? Leonardo? I can understand Michelangelo but Leo?" "Yeah?" April then gave me a startled look. "Why does that surprise you?" I didn't answer.

We went to homeroom and then first class- English. Being in our last year of high school was weird; a good weird but still different. I did my first year of high school back home so I've only been here for sophomore year. But I think what I was told applies to this school too. When I was a junior, one of the seniors at my old school told me that I looked like a hapless kid to him. I don't remember if I was insulted or not but I never forgot it. Now that I was a senior, I understood completely what he meant. It was weird; I never noticed it before but the school seemed to be divided into two informal parts- the seniors and everyone else. It felt like we were the ones who ruled the school; well, not me exactly per say, but our class. I have to admit, it felt a little nice being the "big kids" on campus for once, though I doubt it was going to influence my life very much.

There were some downsides to being a senior however. English class got even more boring- if that was possible. The teacher, Mr. Carpson, was in the middle of a very dull Ye' Old English lecture; he believed in jumping right on into our work at the start of the semester. Cause that'll make you the most popular teacher in the school. Bored out of my skull, I glanced over at April who gave me one of those 'why didn't we switch classes while we had the chance?' looks. I nodded in agreement and then turned to gaze out the window. God, I felt like I was going to fall asleep.

"Blah, blah, history; blah, blah, Medieval English." Ok, I know he didn't say "blah, blah", but that's seriously how it sounded to me. I didn't know it was possible to be this bored; and on the first day of school too! I wonder if this was an omen? Looking back to the front of the room, I perked up slightly when I saw his back turned to me. Seizing the opportunity, I pulled out my phone and hid it under my desk; as most students did. There were two messages from Michelangelo already waiting for me; he usually was the first to message me every day.

[Orange: hey, B.! happy first day of school!] I grinned. [Me: thanks, M. though it doesn't feel so good; in class and soooooo bored] [Orange: awe why? is it math?!] [Me: no, worse; ye' old English!] April gave me a curious look which I only then noticed. Silently, I showed her my screen as discreetly as possible. She looked and nodded with a grin. [Orange: old English? I thought there was just one type of English] This made me chuckle a little; probably a bad move.

[Me: it's like how they spoke in all those old medieval movies; remember Robin Hood?] [Orange: the dude in tights? How could I forget him lol] I was about to text something when another message appeared. [Red: ur not supposed 2 text in class, u know] This made me smile. [Me: trying to watch morph rangers, or whatever that meck show is that u like?] [Red: no, I'm tryin 2 read my comic but Mikey here won't stop laughing (like a loser)] [Me: well, I...]

"Miss Zilla!" My head immediately shot up to see Mr. Carpson standing right beside my desk. Boy, was he giving me a glare. "Uhhhhhhh….." "I believe I asked you to read line nine!" "L-line nine?" Quickly glancing over at April, she held up the textbook pointing at page nineteen. "Line nine, right!" I shuffled there only to find this: non apreciatum propter ydioma incognita. This is English? I can't read that! But, knowing he was expecting me to try- and likely fail- I took in a deep breath. "Non… apre-cee-tume proper e-dye-ma incognita." I knew the last word. He just looked at me for a second like his balled-cut head was about to explode.

Instead of exploding, Mr. Carpson clasped his hands behind his back and regained composure on his pale face. "Miss Zilla, I suggest that you pay strict attention, unless you want to end up like that uncle of yours, Rock," he said in a judgy tone. "You…. mean rich and successful?" This erupted a burst of laughter from the whole classroom. Mr. Carpson jeered around angrily before glaring back at me. "T-there'll be none of that smart attitude in classroom, young lady! If I catch you on that phone again, you'll lose it for the whole day!" "Yes sir," I sunk down in my seat, not really embarrassed- he did this all the time to every kind of student- but more depressed. April and I gave each other a groaning look as Mr. Carpson re-read my line- correctly this time- and proceeded to explain its meaning. This was going to be a loooooooong year.


	9. An Enemy to be Reckoned With

No One's P.O.V.-

" _She won't remember you. You know that, right?" A brief pause. "Yes." "So why? What makes her so damn special?" No reply._

Fourteen Years Ago:

 _A young man with long, light brown hair sat on the steps of the Vincigliata in Florence. He had snuck in yet again, being thin and petit enough to do so. The city was unusually crowded due to a Rock Zilla concert. He personally had no taste for the music and wanted to go somewhere where he could sit in peace. Being a child assassin was draining on the nerves._

 _While sitting amongst the various flowers, gently twirling one in his hand, he heard the sound of something, or someone off in the distance. Glancing up, he was surprised to see this small child- this tiny toddler- making her way over to him. Her feet faltered, it was clear that she hadn't been walking for long. She watched her little feet the whole way, careful not to stumble. Surprise turned to curiosity as he observed the tiny creature. She appeared to be alone, there was no one else around. It was just the two of them there in the castle gardens, so it seemed._

 _The longer he watched her, the more susceptible his feel his emotions grow. This little person, this small thing was a human being; he couldn't wrap his head around that for some reason. She was nothing be a bundle of potential- she'd grow up, probably move, meet someone, and get married. She hadn't even looked up at him and he already planned out her whole life. He felt his heart constrict a tad; his eyes softened onto her little figure. Children…. They almost didn't seem human; they seemed like something else entirely. Something much more pure and innocent; almost too good for this ugly, ugly world…_

 _The boy didn't know what to think when she finally reached him. With no sense of personal barriers, she grabbed onto his knee and straightened herself up slightly. Then she looked up at him with the biggest, most beautiful eyes he'd ever seen. There was something about those eyes….. He recognized that immediately. It's like they were seeing right through into his soul, his very essence._

 _His thin, pale lips parted a little in awe as he stared down at her transfixed. He'd heard rumors and stories about it before but he never thought he'd see it for himself. This girl- this beautiful, beautiful thing- had the sight. She could see…. He slowly began to comprehend what he was witnessing. She could see….._

 _Gently, very gently, her hand reached over to wrap itself around his forefinger. In that moment, he felt a little disgusted with himself; something so pure was touching something so tainted. But she didn't seem deterred, as she just stared up at him with those big, big eyes. The children stayed like that, staring aimlessly into each other's wide gazes, like they were soaking the other in. Eventually the boy smiled- the first real smile he could remember._

 _Slowly his head bent down until their foreheads were pressing together; he made sure not to push too much so to set her off balance. And for those few precious moments, he held her tiny hand back. She won't remember this, he thought as his eyes gently shut. She won't remember me, or this garden, or that she has the vision….. All of that will disappear with time. But right now; right now she has….. "You can see the light," he said in the kindest, most profound way._

 _They stayed like that for a long minute until he eventually pulled away. Still smiling, he reached behind him to pick a sprig of lavender and handed it to the girl. She held it eagerly and gave him a happy expression. This only widened his own smile. Not in a hurry to do anything, he was just going to sit there with her until a voice broke the peaceful silence. "Babycakes! Babycakes, where are you?!"_

 _The girl immediately turned to the side and started making her way down the path, still clenching the lavender in her hand. She gave one last look to the boy, adding the sweetest smile he'd ever seen. Then she disappeared behind a hedge, never to be seen again. His smile began to fade as he stared off down the path she vanished on. Then, very slowly, his eyes returned to his hand; the one she touched. He knew she saw; she saw but didn't understand. How could she? She was only a child. Still…. His jaw clenched a little. I wish she hadn't seen that._

Present Day (still no one's P.O.V.)-

The tall man with dark brown hair stood in Shredder's waiting area. He wasn't used to being told to wait but decided not to address it; his new boss seemed moronic enough, why go shaking waters? The door eventually opened and Tiger Claw stepped out. "Are you Micheletto?" He nodded, not verbally responding. "Come with me."

The mutant tiger ledge Micheletto down the hall to Shredder's personal layer; he was already waiting inside for them, gazing out the window with his hands clasped behind his back. "Micheletto, sir," Tiger Claw offered as an introduction. Shredder just looked at the man, scanning him up and down with a hint of curiosity. "Are you Micheletto, the legendary assassin of Florence?" "Yes." "Yes "sir"!" Tiger Claw corrected angrily. Micheletto didn't seem the least bit intimidated, peering over at him as if he was more of an annoyance than threat. "Enough, Tiger Claw," Shredder held out his hand, impressed by the man's indifferent reaction.

"Why have you hired me?" Micheletto didn't see the point in making small talk; he was here on a mission. The sooner he got it done, the sooner he could back to Italy. "I contracted you because you're the best assassin in Europe and there's this little pest problem I need you to take care of." "You summoned me here to exterminate some vermin?" This did irritate the great assassin, who wasn't afraid to show it in his expression. "I assure you, these are more than mere vermin," Shedder said with severity.

"There are four mutant turtles in the city." "Turtles? You want me to assassinate turtles?" "No; even I know they are no match for you, but they are being trained by someone. My old foe, Hamato Yoshi, otherwise known as Splinter. You were outrageously expensive to hire and since your boss charges by the body, I will leave the turtles to my other men. But I want you to find and kill Hamato. Give him the information, Tiger Claw," Shredder then addressed to his second in command. Without a word, the tiger handed him a file full of details on Splinter. After a quick once over, Micheletto shut the file.

"Alright, this shouldn't take more than a week." "Good, I expect to see some evidence when the job is done." "I'll see," Micheletto shut the file away in his side bag. Tiger Claw and Shredder looked at each other before the latter turned back to the assassin. "There's one more thing I want you to do for me. My sources indicate that there's someone living in the city with psionics. We haven't identified who it is besides the fact that they're human; from what we can tell, their powers have been dormant for many years. But those abilities are valuable to me. I want you to find the person and bring them back to me- alive." "I see, so you want me to go after someone who has "the sight"?" "I don't care what you call it in Italy. Just find me the one who can see the light."


	10. Red's Nightmare and Check-in

Raphael's P.O.V.-

I have no clue why but I suddenly woke up from my nap in a cold sweat. What the hell? My eyes quickly scanned myself then my surroundings over. For some odd reason, I couldn't stop trembling for a minute or two. Though I couldn't remember it, I felt like I just woke up from a bad dream- a nightmare. So scary that it interrupted my sleep. What's more weird, Baby's image kept popping up in my head over and over. But it wasn't a happy experience; it felt like something- or someone- was looming in the background over her. Couldn't fathom what it was but something definitely felt off- real off.

Leo and Mikey were playing a video game when I wandered into the common area. Neither acknowledged my entrance, too entranced in their current battle. But I didn't care about that. I just rubbed the back of my neck and turned to the eldest. "Where are they? Still at school?" "By "they", I assume you mean Baby and April," Leo said, not moving his eyes off the screen. "School's still on for another hour, why?"

I didn't respond right away, rolling my gaze to the corner of my eyes. "No reason," I eventually sighed. "You ok, Raph?" Now Leo finally glanced over at me. "You look… a little shaken." "I-it's nothing," I rubbed the back of my neck again. "Hey," I then added. "Does "lavender" mean anything to you guys?" "Lavender? You mean the flower? No," Leo had already turned his attention back to the game. "That's what I thought," it didn't mean anything to me either. "Take that, bro!" Mikey yelled, getting more engrossed in the battle. "Oh crap!" Leo joined him.

Leaving them to that, I went off to the kitchen where I knew I would have some privacy. I didn't want to be called out on my blatant hypocrisy; wasn't in the mood to deal with that. I still couldn't shake the feeling of dread; dread hanging around Baby's image in my mind. I pulled out my phone and found her number. I'm not checking up on her, I told myself internally. I'm just… making sure she's paying attention in class, yeah… Cause that's my business, I gave a little cringe. Either way, I'm texting her. My fingers began to type as fast as possible.

Baby's P.O.V.-

"Now, I want a four-hundred-word essay on what you did this summer and more specifically, the moral implications of your actions by tomorrow morning." We all looked at each other, not responding until April raised her hand. "Uh, Mr. Ratburn? We're in twelfth grade." "Mmmmmm, you're right, Miss O'Neil," his tanned hand rubbed along his chin thoughtfully. We all then smiled at her like she was our savour- prematurely, it would sadly appear. "I'd like a five-hundred-word essay by tomorrow; it'll help prepare you for college. And remember, spelling counts." We didn't hold back our groans this time as the room erupted with them.

"Now then, let's get a head start on this year's curriculum," Mr. Ratburn turned to start scribbling something down on the board; I don't know what it was, I wasn't paying attention. Of all the teachers to get stuck with for…. Wait, what class was this again? I checked my timetable inside my notebook. College prep?! We had him for college prep?! Ugh! This was going to be a nightmare. Could things get any worse?

At that moment, I got a message on my phone. With a quick glance to see that Mr. Strictest Teacher of the Year wasn't looking, I pulled it out for a check. [Red: u'd better be paying attention in class] Ugh, I both rolled my eyes and grinned simultaneously. If he wanted to know where I was, why didn't he just come out and ask? Oh well, at least this was more interesting than…. whatever that was Mr. Ratburn was scribbling down. [Me: u don't see the irony in ur message; how can I pay attention if ur texting me?] [Red: whatever; pay attention! I'll see u later after skool] [Me: k, see u at the shop later] I had to put my phone away after that when April gave me a nudge. It appears Mr. Ratburn saw and wasn't too pleased, judging by the way he was sternly glaring at me and tapping his foot. Yep, I was wrong; things could get worse.


	11. April's New Student

"Man! I can't believe he assigned us a ten-page paper on the first day!" April and I slunk out of Mr. Ratburn's class, along with all his other downtrodden students. "How does he expect us to write 5000 words, on top of our other homework?" "Don't worry," April grinned over at me. "I'll come over later and we can work on it together. We'll do it after the guys go out on patrol." "Sounds good." "Was that Mikey texting you back there?" I shook my head. "Raphael, he was "checking in"," I said doing air quotations with my fingers. "Oh, why? Is something wrong?" "I don't think so. Just saying hi, I guess." Then April smiled, glancing up at the ceiling. "He's so stubborn."

We arrived at our lockers and began to put our books away until an unfamiliar voice caught our attention. "You April O'Neil?" We both spun around to see a lanky boy wearing a black hat and hockey gear. Although he said April's name, he was looking at me. "Well, rejoice, cause I'm the guy you're gonna tutor this year," his wrapped hand went up into the air. "Uh, I'm not April; she is," I pointed to my best human friend, who didn't look at all impressed. "Oh, well you're cute too," he announced turning to her.

"Tutor you?" Her eyebrow rose suspiciously. "Yeah, I signed up for that peer tutor program." "Are we part of that?" She whispered over to me. "I think Mr. Ratburn signed the whole class up; something about character-building? I'm tutoring creative writing, you're doing math- remember?" Then we both gazed back at Mr. Hockey Jock over here. "Clearly not," April gave a predominant frown.

"So you gonna help me or not?" "Uh…." "Cause if you don't, I'll get kicked off the hockey team." "Your grades are that low?" I accidently asked out loud, earning a sharp glare from April. "Dude! I don't have time to study! I got hockey and football practice, plus La Crosse and track and….." "You don't have time to study, yet you have the time to be tutored?" April's arms crossed. "Eh, I'll make time," he smirked leaning in towards her. "If it's with a hottie like you." And I had to cover my tiny laugh with my hand while a wave of disgust washed over April's face.

April looked at him for a moment before blinking at me. "We're getting marked on this, aren't we?" "Knowing Mr. Ratburn, probably." Then she let the longest sigh ever. "Fine! I'll tutor you." "Hey great! Name's Casey Jones. Meet you say in the park tonight?" "Tonight? Sorry but we're already swamped with homework. Would tomorrow or Wednesday night work?" "Sure thing," he flashed her a brilliant grin. "See ya then. Good evening, ladies," with a wave, he set off down the hall. April's eyes rolled while I laughed. "Oh, now he tries to be charming."

My red-hair friend let out the longest groan. "Ugh, Baby! I don't wanna tutor anyone, especially "him"." "Why? Was it the body odor, missing teeth, or utter lack of allure that put you off?" "Haha, very funny. But this year's already busy enough and now I'm stuck babysitting Mr. Puck Pock on top of everything." "Yeah, that's pretty much it. But unless you want Mr. Ratburn to keep you after class, you have to do it." April didn't reply right away, staring off into the direction Casey disappeared to. Eventually she sighed- a sigh in defeat. "Alright, I guess I have no choice; I'll be his tutor this year." "Heh," I smirked which she noticed. "Donnie's gonna love this." "Hey!"


	12. Uncle's Advice

"Are you sure its ok to close the shop each time the turtles come over?" I was busy making the turtles' sandwiches; they'd be over soon. "Sure!" Uncle hollered from the back room. "They need free run of the house." "Or we could just stay upstairs; I'm sure they'd be ok with that too." "Oh baby niece," he then came out with a box in his arms. "You don't get it. You have to make an effort with them." "Uh, ok; why?" "Well how else do you expect one of them to date you?"

This made me almost drop Donatello's sub I was currently preparing on the floor. "D-date one of the tur-…." I couldn't finish the sentence. "Yeah!" Uncle said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Have you forgotten why we sent you to public school? Remember what your uncle Rock said: We Zilla boys have to revel in all that raw testosterone pulsing through our veins. Need to deal with it in a healthy way, baby niece! Gees, I can't believe I have to tell you that." "And I can't believe you're telling me this for a second time! I'm a girl, uncle!" "Oh, yeah…. well, you still should hook up with one of the turtles. You haven't dated anyone since you started school; they're the reason, aren't they?" "N-no!" No! No, of course not, they couldn't be…. could they? Wait! No! What was I thinking? No!

"Hmmmmmm," uncle didn't look at all convinced, folding his arms and turning to face me. After a moment, he gave a little shrug. "Well, in that case, they better date you to make up for chasing all the human boys away. The nerve!" "N-no, uncle; it's not like that…" "Wait 'til I tell my brother! He'll be furious." "No! You're not telling uncle Rock anything! You promised, remember?" "Mmmmmm, well ok; but they better get at it! No niece of mine will graduate single." "Uncle…." I rubbed my hand over my eyes exasperated. Why me? Why? "Maybe try kissing one of them; that ought to get things rolling." "Uncle!" "What?! Kisses work…. I mean, so does prime roast, but your cooking's horrible." "I'm not kissing or cooking anything, uncle!"

"You're cooking what now?" Oh god! I spun around to see none other than all four turtles standing there, looking at me slightly puzzled. Oh, great! How much of that did they hear? "You're cooking us something?!" Michelangelo's face lit up with excitement. Not much, it seems. "U-uh, I'm making your sandwiches." "Huh," Raphael's arms crossed in front of his shell; classic. "Why don't you just let uncle Zilla make them? He's way better at it." "Raph!" Leonardo gave him an incredulous look.

"See?!" Uncle's hand stuck out their way and I could feel my eyes roll halfway across the world. "Even Red agrees with me! You gotta learn to cook if you wanna land yourself a man." "Land a what now?" Leonardo cocked an eyebrow, as did the second eldest. "Nothing! Uncle, you're supposed to be doing inventory. I'll finish the subs." "Good girl! Getting in all the practice you can," he patted my head in approval while I just stood there wanting to sink through the floor. Then he leaned in to whisper into my ear: "go for Blue; he's smart!" I watched as he disappeared into the back room before turning back to them, absolutely mortified. Ugh! If it's not weird teachers at school, it's weird relatives at home.


	13. Evening Together

"Ok! Time for subs!" I brought the four turtles, who were lounging in the table area, a tray of four subs. "A pizza slice on white bread for Michelangelo." "Awesome! Thanks bae!" "Salami on whole wheat with extra cheese for Donatello." "Hey thanks, Baby." "Five meat sub with extra meat for Raphael." "Thanks." "And last but not least, chicken breast on rye for Leonardo." "Thank you, Baby." "Enjoy!" I spun to get my own sub from the counter across the room. But by the time I got back, their subs had already disappeared, with Michelangelo burping and Donatello licking his big, green fingers. Ugh, not again!

"Guys, dinner is supposed to be bonding time, but how can we eat together if you always scarf down your food as fast as possible?" "Hey! It's not our fault we were hungry," Raphael replied, only adding to my irritation. "But don't worry," he then sent me a playful smirk. "We'll wait while you eat." I sighed, rolling my eyes. How gallant of them.

Leonardo wiped his hands with a napkin and flashed me a kind smile. "How was your first day of school, Baby?" "Good! Aside from getting Mr. Carpson and Ratburn in the same semester," my eyes scrolled off to the side. "When's April getting here?" Donatello asked. "Soon. She had to pop by home to get some books. We have a ton of homework to do tonight." The turtles looked at each other and broke out laughing. "Oh man, homework on the first day of school; sucks to be you," Raphael pointed at me. "They shouldn't be allowed to do that," Leonardo said, still chuckling slightly. "I agree, but here we are." "Wait, if you have a bunch of homework, then April also has a lot of homework. They can't do that to my April! And on the first day of school too," Donatello's arms followed. "You didn't seem to have a problem when I got piled with homework," I shot him a glare. "That's different." "Oh really? How?" "Because it's funny when it happens to you," Raphael noted, smirking in my direction. Gallant indeed.

"Hey baby niece, is April here yet?" Uncle came out from the back room with his inventory clipboard in hand. "Not yet, uncle." "You two just gonna do homework tonight?" "Well can you please close up before you start? Me and Cactus Jake got yoga in fifteen minutes." "Cactus Jake?" Donatello raised an eyebrow. "You mean that "cowboy" we met in Brussels? He was an actor for Paris Disneyland!" "That's how all great cowboys get their start! Anyways, he's in the city and I thought we'd spend some time together." "Poor Cactus Jake," Raphael crossed his arms."

Uncle set the clipboard down on the counter and pulled out a typed paper. "Baby niece, remember that special delivery mail the mailman brought the other day?" "No." "Well, turns out that I accidently lost it in the cheese box while doing inventory. Who knew provolone was so good for hiding things? It's a bill from the Lancaster Hospital where your uncle is having his reconstructive tongue surgery. Did you call Skunk to make sure it got paid?" "Uhhhhhh…"

" _Hi Skunk, I'm just calling to see how uncle's doing." "Oh, much better, love. Aside from his crippling fear of dentists, the doctors say he'll make a full recovery." "That's good," I sighed. "How about you? Have you been staying at the hospital with him?" "Of course! You know I'd never leave Rock's side. Been living in the tour van right outside the emergency ward." "Uh, is it safe to live in the tour van long term?" "Sure it is! I've already taken out the engine to make room for a jacuzzi." This was followed by a few loud crashes and bangs. "Ah, gotta go, love. Your uncle is trying to sing while they're operating on his tongue again. Rock! That's a surgical knife, not a guitar pick!"_

"I think he's on it." "Why are all the guys in your family insane?" "Raph means eccentric!" Leonardo quickly added. Before I could answer, uncle shuddered behind the counter. "I'll tell you why. It's because when we were little, our father made us listen to (gasp!) cello music!" "Uncle…." "You don't know, you guys!" His eyes shifted from side to side as both hands grabbed onto the side of his head. "Cello music changes people." "Why is cello music dangerous?" Michelangelo blinked in confusion. "I have a better question. How did you turn out seemingly normal being related to that?" Raphael's thumb stuck out at uncle.

"Hey! You don't see me put on a mask and be an unasked-for vigilante patrolling after dark like Batman!... Hey, baby niece; do you think that if bought some black fabric and made a mask….." "No! You're not becoming a vigilante!" "Fine!" Uncle went upstairs to fetch his coat and yoga mat, muttering to himself the entire way. "Dream-crushing niece… won't let me be the Sandwich Savior… Cactus Jake says I look good in black…." "Speaking of patrol, we should get going to," Leonardo checked the wall clock. "Come on, you guys; it's getting late. Let's go." "Alrightio!" Michelangelo hopped to his feet and the three brothers followed suit.

I went behind the counter, pulling out a bag of four more subs. "Here's something for later," I handed it to Leonardo, who smiled at me. "Thanks, Baby." "Yeah, thanks for the grub, bae! You're my favorite person!" "Mikey!" "T-tell April I said hi," Donatello told me. "I will," I walked them to the front door. It was a pretty quiet street, so it was safe for them to come and go through the front of the shop. Both Leonardo and Raphael paused to face me at the threshold of the door. "Remember to lock the door behind us," Leonardo said. "And no answering it for anyone," Raphael added in a firm voice. "And keep the lights on, even if you're not downstairs." "Don't hesitate to call us if you need anything."

Gees, talk about overprotective much. "What is this?" Still, I cracked a smile. They weren't trying to be controlling or anything; I knew they were just trying to protect me…. albeit maybe a bit excessively. "Am I in the witness protection program?" I joked. "Yes," all four answered in earnest. Uh….. ok then. I wasn't expecting them to be so serious about it; even Michelangelo and Donatello. But I tried to laugh it off. "Boy, I let in one Purple Dragon once and now you guys are constantly checking in on me." "Cause we don't want to come recuse you unnecessarily," Raphael shot me a glare. "The door stays locked, got it?" "Alright, alright; aside from April, I won't open it for anyone." "Good," they said in unison. The youngest three then exited the shop with the eldest pausing for a minute. He gazed back over his shoulder to look at me.

It wasn't a possessive or manipulative expression; just a soft, almost pleading look. I noticed the rims around his mouth soften slightly. "Please….." This was the only thing Leonardo said to me, catching me off guard. But I didn't have to ask what he meant; I knew. Aside from Raphael, he worried about me the most. Since that night Hoogie attacked me….. _"Really? Leonardo? I can understand Michelangelo but Leo?"_ _Yeah? Why does that surprise you?"_ Huh, I guess when I thought about it, it didn't surprise me. Not at all….

Leonardo and I gazed at each other, not saying anything else. Instead of verbally replying, my head just gave a light nod. This seemed to satisfy the blue masked turtle who rejoined his brothers in the dark of night. The whole sense was roughly thirty seconds long but it was long enough…. I stared off into the black where my dear friends disappeared into before sighing softly, shutting the door, and locking it promptly. 


	14. Lock Your Damn Window

I was in my room working on my essay on my laptop. April stayed until around eleven o'clock, waiting to leave until we were both finished our papers. Now I was doing revision. It was close to midnight but I knew better than to go to bed already. I didn't even flinch as my bedroom window creaked open. "When are you gonna start locking this thing?" Grinning, I spun to the side in my seat to see Raphael standing in front of my windowsill. His arms were crossed over the front of his shell like he was utterly unimpressed. This only made my grin grow. "Hi, Raphael."

"How many times do I have to tell you to lock your damn window?" His big green foot tapped firmly on the floor. "Then how would you get in every night? You come to make sure its locked every night, Raphael." "Because you don't lock it!" "I would if I knew you weren't coming," I sighed, turning back to my computer screen. "I'll stop coming when I know you're automatically locking your window," he came over to my desk drawers.

"How was patrol?" "Boring," the red masked turtle started rummaging through the bottom drawer. "Turns out Donnie's Kraang detection software was off, again," yanking out a ton of candy from my official candy drawer, he slammed it shut. "Hey!" This caught my attention. "I didn't give you permission to rummage through my candy stash." "Call it payment for coming all the way over here," he went to plunk himself in my soft chair, putting his feet up on my bed and resting the candy on the front of his shelf. "What are you working on?" He asked, starting to open the first chocolate bar.

"Uh, just an essay for Mr. Ratburn's class; it's due tomorrow." "Oh, read it to me." "It's not that interesting." "So? I like everything you write." This made me turn sideways again so I could look at him, resting my arm on the back of my chair. "What?" He noticed I was staring at him a minute later. "You know, Raphael. If you wanted to make sure my window was locked, you could just text me." "Ha! Like that would work; you don't answer your phone while you're doing homework." "Still, it's not like anything is going to happen to me." "And if it did? You're pretty helpless….." "I don't live alone; may I remind you. Uncle's here too." "Oh yeah; what's your uncle gonna do? Talk their ears hears off?" "Uhhhhhhhhh….."

" _I love your dragon tattoos! How long did they take? Did they hurt? Where did you get them done? Wait, don't tell me; you did them yourselves? My brother tried to do his own tattoo once. He wanted to tattoo himself riding a giraffe on his forearm… but he accidently wound up tattooing his big toe instead. And he was wearing boots at the time too….. Wait, didn't you come here to rob us? Better try again tomorrow; had a pretty slow day today."_

"You know what? That's actually scarily accurate," I hummed to myself, rubbing my thumb over my chin. "What's the big deal? So I come by every night to make sure your window's locked. What's wrong with that?" "It seems a little excessive, unless you have ulterior motives," I fired off a smirk in his direction. He did not seem to appreciate this, frowning at me. "What are you implying?" "I'm not implying anything; you imply, I infer." "Would you just shut up? It helps me sleep." "What does?" "This, obviously. I can't sleep unless I know that you're safe."

I didn't say anything, just blinked at Raphael with wide eyes. What did he just say? As if immediately comprehending what he just said himself, Raphael's eyes drifted off into nowhere for a second. Then he gave his head a violent shake. "W-what I meant was that I can't sleep because I know I'll have to wake up in the middle of the night to save your butt!" That's not what he meant. But I didn't address it, just kept staring at him in a sort of awe.

The room felt tense for a while, during which neither of us said anything for a minute or so. Eventually I smiled, as if trying to banish the awkward aura radiating off Raphael. "Well, we wouldn't want that. Don't worry, Raphael; I promise not to go to sleep unless my window is locked." "G-good!" His back stiffened a tad. "Uh, Baby….. you know I didn't mean anything weird by….. I mean it's not like I'm worried about your safety because I like you or anything!" "No, Raphael," I gave him a gentle, understanding smile, lowering my eyes a little. "I know what you meant." "Y-you do?" "Yes," I nodded. "Then would stop looking at me like that?!" "Like what?" "Like….. like that! God, I get enough chills when you look at me as is. You don't have to make it worse for me!" Oh! "S-sorry!" Oh…. Chills, huh? Yes, I think I was beginning to understand.


	15. Eyes Re-Opened

I went straight to the lair after school. April was having dinner tonight with her dad so I went alone. Leonardo messaged me to say that they were currently out checking something and would be home soon. I at least thought Splinter would be home but when I got there, no one was around it seemed. "Hello? Master Splinter?" Nothing. He must be meditating or something, I shrugged it off and went inside the common area.

I'll admit, it was a lot cleaner than when I first came here. It took me some time before they finally convinced me to come on down to the lair. You see, I had this debilitating fear of rats and hearing that their master was a human-sized rat…. Well, let's just say I ran literally screaming the first time I saw him. But as time passed and I visited more, I slowly got used to him; even the idea in being in an abandon underground railway station.

Walking over to the low table, I saw Raphael's comic books all scattered around. Heh, a small grin peered across my lips. Him and his comic books; if he wasn't out patrolling, skateboarding, or annoying me, he was either in his room or out here reading away. Would it kill him to read something substantial once and a while? My hand reached down to pick one up. But the moment my fingers touched the cover, my eyes suddenly glossed over. Then the most extraordinary thing happened. I felt my conscious slip away from me in less than a second. Without will or consent, a rapid mirage of images zoomed through my mind with a familiar voice speaking in the background. I don't remember shutting my eyes but for about five seconds, I lost all sight, drifting off into somewhere far, far away.

" _I love you." Me and the four turtles sitting in the sub shop laughing together. "I love you." Raphael pushing me on a swing while Michelangelo swung beside me. "I love you." The turtles training with Splinter observing. "I can't stop loving you." The Shredder in his tower downtown looking out of a window. "I love you." A man with dark brown hair wearing a black eye mask standing on a roof. "I love you…..." The last image was of Raphael and me. We were much older than our current selves, standing side-by-side with Raphael's big, green hand holding mine. "I love you." We were standing there and looking at each other…_

" _You are so easy to love."_

My vision returned as I blinked desperately. Immediately my whole body shot up and stumbled back a few steps, with my eyes continuing to blink like I had regained my lost sight after years. W-what the hell was that?! I brought my hand up to my head, which still felt light. I….. I remember seeing and hearing something but as soon as it appeared, it was gone into obscurity. I couldn't stop trembling; I knew something- something profound- had just happened to me, though I had no clue what it was. I couldn't remember anything….

"Baby?" My head instantly shot around to see a confused Splinter staring at me. He was in his usual robe and had his long wooden staff in his paws. "Are you alright?" After a few deep breaths, I came to recognize that I was still in the lair, though it felt like I had just left for a long time. "I'm in the lair," I heard myself say out loud. "I'm in the lair….." My eyes scrolled off into nowhere in particular.

Splinter came down in my direction. "Are you alright? You look frazzled, my child." "I….! I, uh…." I slowly found my eyes drift to my hands. "I don't know. I was just standing here and all of a sudden…." I know something happened to me, but what? I can't remember. Splinter's wide eyes were locked down onto me as he appeared to evaluate the situation. I saw his attention drift to Raphael's comic book for a second. "I see, you do not remember." "N-no," I shook my head. "But you're sure something happened?" "I… I think so….. but I can't remember anything…." I lifted my hand up to my head again. The large rat studied me for another second before solemnly nodding his head.

"Baby, look me straight in the eye," Splinter instructed out of nowhere; I obeyed. He stared into my eyes for a long moment, then nodded a second time. "I knew it; from the moment I met you, I could tell….. But I never thought your eyes would shine that brightly." "My eyes are shining?!" I asked, hurriedly getting out my phone and opening the camera. They looked perfectly normal to me after a quick check. "T-they look fine." "That is good; its better if you can't see it. It only means that your eyes have been "re-opened", as it were." "Re-opened? What are you talking about?"

The wise, old rat looked at me for another long second before chuckling lightly and shaking his head. "It is not for you to worry about. You will come to see in time but for now, it'll likely not affect you," he continued at the insistence of the expression on my face. "Do not fret, my dear," his paw patted my shoulder comfortingly. "I will explain it to you in time. For now, just enjoy yourself and focus on school." "Y-yes…." I gazed down, a little disappointed. With one last pat, Splinter brushed past me to head to the dojo. Before entering though, he paused to peer at me through the corner of his eye. "Baby?" I turned to face him. "Do not shut your eyes again." And with that, he shut the sliding door, leaving me standing there with a head full of questions.


	16. Fight

I was sitting on the couch in between Raphael and Michelangelo. Donatello and Leonardo sat casually on the floor. We ate pizza for dinner once they got home and were currently watching tv. Or rather, they were watching; I was still too preoccupied with what happened earlier. My hand rubbed the other as if I was expecting to feel something. I know something happened before the guys got here…. I know, I just…. don't remember. It must have something to do with my "shining eyes", as Splinter called them. But I had no idea what that meant! What did he mean by "shining"? And that I shouldn't close my eyes again? I didn't think I had…. had I? No, I can see perfectly! It's not like I couldn't see or something…. could I?

"It's Mr. Super's Super Fun Science Show!" The announcer proclaimed. A cheesy-looking man wearing a lab coat and glasses appeared on the screen. "Howdy do! Guess what, kiddies? Today we're gonna learn about optical illusions!" "Ugh," Michelangelo groaned, spreading out his arms at his sides. "Can't we watch something cool? Like Changeformers?" "Magic School Truck is cool, Mikey," Donatello shot his younger brother a side-glare. "We could always watch Elderly Transformed Samurai Iguanas?" Leonardo offered. "It's my turn and I say we're gonna watch this. Besides, I want to learn how optical illusions work." "Only you," the youngest added under his breath.

It was around this time that the crossed-armed Raphael gazed over at me. I wasn't watching the screen, still fiddling with my hands. "What's with you?" "Huh?!" I suddenly blinked up at him, forgetting for a second that I wasn't the only one in the room. "You've been quiet all evening. Is something up?" "N-no! No, I just…." My gaze slowly returned back down to my hand. "What's wrong, Baby? I thought you liked the Magic School Truck," Donatello glanced at me over his shoulder. "I do! I'm just…. tired tonight." "Busy day at school?" Leonardo asked in a softer tone. "Y-yeah…" My voice trailed off into nowhere. None of them looked convinced, particularly Raphael. "Hey, Baby…." He was about to start until all their shell phones beeped at once.

Pulling them out for a check, their eyes collectively grew in concern. "It's from April. The Purple Dragon are hassling Murakami-san for protection money again," Leonardo stated. Within seconds, all four turtles were on their feet and I promptly followed suit. "Alright guys, let's go," the eldest instructed his brothers. Raphael immediately noticed as I trailed them to the exit. "And where do you think you're going?" He shot me a stern look. "I want to check on uncle; make sure he's ok." "We'll check in on him, Baby; you don't have to worry," Leonardo tried to reassure me. But I shook my head. "Thanks, but I rather go now, just in case…" "No."

Everyone blinked in surprise, even me. My head moved in such a way that I was facing Raphael directly; he stared back at me with determined eyes. "What?" I simply asked slightly dumbfounded. "Just stay here. We can handle this; we won't let anything happen to Uncle." "But I…." "I said no! It's too dangerous; just stay put and don't even think about moving." This was… not a suggestion; this was a command. The four of us just stared at him in a sort of awe. He'd been protective before, but this was almost overprotective. A taste of stubbornness rising up within me, I felt like I had enough nerve to put my hands defiantly on my hips.

"Don't you think that's my decision to make?" "No, cause you'll make the wrong decision." That's…. mean. "I'm not that delicate, Raphael. I won't be abducted the moment I go outside alone." He gave a soft growl in response, his big hands balling into fists. "How stupid are you?! It's just plain old not safe! You think you can handle yourself out there, but you clearly can't." "Raph!" Leonardo gasped, also gawking at him in astonishment. "How do you know?" My hand rose to my chest affronted; this was genuinely insulting. "Because I've had to save your butt a million times," he loudly retorted, narrowing his glare onto me.

"That's not true, Raph," the elder went into immediate damage control. "Baby is very capable; she's smart. She doesn't deliberately get herself into trouble." "Leonardo!" I blinked at him scandalized. "Uh! What I meant was, uh, um….." "No, trouble's right," Raphael crossed his arms. "You have a knack for getting yourself kidnapped, Baby. Seriously, why do you have to make me worry all the damn time?!" "I never asked you to worry about me! And that's not my intention, Raphael," I fired back. "I wouldn't worry if you didn't go putting yourself in unnecessary harm, you idiot." "Raph!" Leonardo yelled. The two youngers just watched in silent awe from the side, too scared to intervene.

"What's so bad with staying here? It's safe here in the lair." "Uh, he's got a point, Baby," Leonardo found the courage to add, giving me a pleading look. "I can't hide away forever. What do you expect me to do?" "Stay put," Leonardo and Raphael answered in unison. "Oh, so I should just spend the rest of my life like this?" "No!" Raphael hollered back. "You should shut up and let me protect you!" Again, we all blinked to the second eldest in astonishment. "Uh, guys? We really should get going," Donatello felt this was a good time to butt in. Raphael gave me one last glare before following after his younger brothers. "Please stay here," Leonardo then told me. "We'll call you from the shop. Don't worry about your uncle," he flashed me a reassuring grin. "Let's go, Leo!" Donatello called back. He turned to join the others, leaving the lair and me there by myself; minus Splinter in the other room.

I didn't react for a minute, just standing there with a bunch of backed up emotions. Then, when I was sure that they were gone, I flew into a rage. I knocked Raphael's comics angrily off the table and kicked my foot in the air. Those stupid, arrogant, overprotective….. They're worse than most parents! Talk about controlling much. 'Stay here. Don't go there. You can't handle yourself in the real world.' I'm the one who's human in case they've forgotten. Ugh! I can't believe how they see me; how weak they think I am. It's infuriating! Irate, I stomped over to the exit. Screw that! There's no way I'm staying here; I needed to get away. To have some time to myself. For emphasis, I turned off my phone, so they couldn't find me and presumably yell at me later. I needed to be alone right now, whether they liked it or not.


	17. We'll Meet Again

I found an empty park and swing to sit on. In a melancholic fashion, I rocked myself to and frow with my foot. Initial anger melted into just a genuine sadness over the last hour. It was clear that they didn't trust me to handle myself out in the world. And granted, I have been abducted a number of times over the past year since I moved here but nothing really bad as ever happened. They made sure nothing happened to me, since that night at Mr. Murakami's. In reality, I owed my well-being to them; I don't know what would have happened to me if it wasn't for them. But… they didn't have to get so controlling. I know I was the second woman to come into their lives and they were still getting used to female company, but they didn't have to treat me like such a glass doll all the time.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I failed to notice how dark it was out now or that it started drizzling lightly. I let the rain fall down onto me, not really caring how wet I got. My whole body flinched in surprise as something suddenly draped over my head, effectively sheltering me from the rain. Looking up, I saw this gorgeous tall man standing in front of me. His hair was dark and long, and he was dressed in all black. From the moment I laid eyes on him, that same familiar sensation from earlier took hold of me. Without warning, it felt like I lost consciousness for a second, drifting off into somewhere far, far away. A constant stream of images appeared before me, coming and vanishing in the blink of an eye.

 _Florence, where a man dressed inl black stands over the city. Fighting, blood, murder- he was at the center of it all. Killing countless men. Standing in a palace garden holding a sprig of lavender in his hand. The Shredder at his layer. His coveting a pair of shimmering eyes. The man looking at me from a distance. "You can see the light." The last image was of a younger version of him sitting in the same Italian garden as before. There was a toddler propping herself up using his knee, allowing the two to stare at each other; she was holding onto a sprig of lavender._

My eyes blinked rapidly as I regained control of my senses. I stared up at the stranger in utter bewilderment, totally unsure what just happened to me or what I just saw. Just like before, I couldn't remember any of it, but I knew something happened; I could feel it. He didn't look at all surprised or put off by my actions, just kept staring back down at me with those deep, deep eyes. It took me a second to realize that the coat resting on my head was his; he put it on me to block out the rain. Confused and a little shy- he was beautiful, after all- my cheeks blushed as I began to falter. "You'll catch a cold," he spoke for the first time, making my eyes grow gigantic. His voice; oh god, his voice! It sounded like the perfect promise of sin and salvation mixed together; dangerous yet protective. I just gawked up at him with wide eyes, too shy to say anything. Not when he sounded that perfect.

Giving a small grin, the man proceeded to sit down on the swing next to mine. His eyes trailed off for a moment as if to be remembering something pleasant. Eventually, they returned to me. "You're trembling." "I….!" I couldn't help but swallow. What was I supposed to say? "I'm sorry…." Probably not that. He chuckled a little and gazed back down at the ground. "What are you doing out here by yourself?" "I… I wanted to be alone…. for a while." Why was I telling him this? It made me look really petty. He merely responded with a nod. This was followed by a long pause; my eyes peering over at him the whole time.

I did notice when his head gave a little shake; an ironic shake. "After all this time…. I can't believe…" The man took a deep breath in. "You're beautiful," he said to himself in a whisper. "Huh?" I perked up; he didn't repeat what he just said, instead gazing up at me. "You must be very confused." "Uh, well yes? I am." "But not because of me." "Uh…. n-no actually?" How did he know that? Wait, was he talking about….. Afraid to ask, I tried to change topics before he said anything else. I wasn't sure if I wanted to know what he meant….

"I-I like your ascent. I take it you're from Italy?" My head tilted a tad. "Yes. I'm from Florence." "Oh, I love Florence! Did you move here or are you on vacation?" "I'm here for work." "What do you do?" "I'm a specialist of sorts." He didn't seem to want to explain it any more than that, so I decided to let it drop. But I was mildly surprised when he was the next to speaking, willingly. "Why did you move here?" "Me? Oh! I moved here with my uncle. My other uncle's working in Europe." "I see, and how long will you be here?" "Until I'm finished school, I guess? I'm in my last year." "You will be moving in June?" "I think so?" He nodded. I didn't realize that I hadn't mentioned that I moved here and was not on vacation; I was too captivated by the mysterious man. This man, this Adonis…. Who was he exactly? I couldn't help but wonder….

"What's your name?" There was a brief pause. "Chiaro." "That's lovely! I'm Baby- Baby Zilla." "I know." "What?" "Do you like the city? Are you happy here?" "Huh? Oh, Yes! Yes, I do, and am. How about you?" Another pregnant pause. "It has its charms." I watched him for a minute, trying to figure him out. He had this air of sorrow about him; this cloud constantly hanging over him. But it was more like a tragedy; he was a tragic beauty, though I didn't know why. He was deep, dark, and full of secrets. And yet… I couldn't help but feel like I'd seen those melancholic eyes before. I'm sure I'd never seen him before; I definitely would have remembered that encounter. But… something about him felt so familiar, and lovely.

The silence lasted longer this time but somehow, I didn't mind; I was growing more comfortable with the pauses. We just sat there, swaying on the swings in the rain. I was so enraptured by his presence that I had completely forgotten why I had come to the park in the first place. I also forgot that his black jacket covered my head, effectively sheltering me. All I knew is that I was warm in that moment…. warm and safe. Or at least that's how I felt; I didn't know, I felt….

My shoulders immediately flinched as Chiaro unexpectedly stood up. The rain was drying up, leaving just the stars and gigantic moon above us. I watched the man stare at the stars for a moment before turning his head to send me a gentle smile; a sincere smile. The sincerity was so apparent in his face that I couldn't help but blush, my own eyes widening a little. I'd only had one other person ever look at me that way before, or at least that I remember. It was the day I got back from my vacation last summer, when Raphael first saw me. It was the expression of elation and calm at the same time; of relief and excitement…. So many things were in his eyes in that moment. It's like they were etching me into his mind, and I had no idea why…. This man has never met me before, so why did he look at me that way?

As if to be reading my mind, his soft pale lips let out a small chuckle. "May I walk you home?" Chiaro offered me his arm. Feeling compelled to take it, I gently moved his jacket to hang on my shoulders and straightened up to stand beside him. With the slightest hesitation, my arm slipped into his. We proceeded to leave the park arm-in-arm, and it never occurred to me that someone might catch us. All my thoughts were currently absorbed in him and the sensation of his arm holding mine. I felt like a real lady being escorted home by a true gentleman…. For some reason, something instinctively told me that he was like no other man I'd met and I'm not sure it was in a good way.

We walked in typical silence for a while, being the only ones down the streets we went down. It didn't occur to me that I wasn't leading to my house; Chiaro took the lead and I let him without realizing it. When I peeked back up at him, I half-surprised to see him already gazing down at him. Another tender smile crossed his beautiful, beautiful lips. But if I didn't know any better, I'd say there was a hint of sadness, pure sorrow in them this time. "It's going to be hard leaving the city," he said quietly out of nowhere. "You're leaving?!" This caught my attention. "I've decided to go back to Florence for a while," Chiaro replied, still looking me straight in the eye. "Oh…." My gaze broke from his, drifting off into nowhere. "Well, that's not a bad thing. Florence is lovely." "Yes; yes, you are."

"Will you…. come back, do you think?" I couldn't look him in the eye while I asked this; I was too embarrassed. A familiar pause. "Next summer, I think." "Oh! Oh….." Well that's lousy timing… Wait! What was I thinking? I didn't know this man; he was practically a stranger. There's no reason why this should disappoint me. Every atom in my body froze as a cool, slender, pale hand reached over to rest against my cheek. Chiaro gently moved my head in such a way that I was looking up at him again. His smile had disappeared by now; he just stared down at me with those eyes…. Those deep, deep eyes. His lips parted slightly as if he remembered to breathe. We stopped walking just to stare at each other under a street light. Neither of us said anything for a long while but it wasn't necessary. Everything he wanted to say was conveyed in those endless eyes of his.

"You are similar to this precious girl, whom I met back when I was a child…. Someone I wanted to protect and worried about for so many years….." Chiaro's eyes softened onto mine; them glistening in the light shining above. "Someone who made me smile….. for the first time…" I felt my heart start to race. "W-where is she now?" I managed to squeak out. Instead of answering me, his lips parted a little again; his thumb rubbed back and forth on my cheek with the upmost tenderness. "Those eyes of yours…." He breathed heavily. "They still shine….." "C-Chiaro?" "Why? Why did it have to turn out like this?" L-like what? The faintest shadow of a smile returned to his lips. "Fondness…. This feeling is real too; it's hidden deep inside…." "Chiaro?" I tried again, confused beyond belief.

Chiaro's hand suddenly pulled away. He then reached behind me to remove his coat. I was about to ask what was going on when I saw that we were at my building. When did we get here?! I blinked at it in disbelief. But Chiaro just kept his eyes glued on me; his grin growing as he watched my reaction. Realizing this, I immediately straightened up and turned to face him. "T-thank you for walking me home and letting me use your coat; that was very sweet." "You're welcome." "Will uh… you be going back to Florence this week?" He softly nodded. "Oh, well have a good and safe trip," I tried my best to be positive about the situation. "Don't worry, Baby." "Huh?" His smile made its way across his face. "We'll meet again." "We will?!" I didn't mean to sound that desperate; blushing a little in response to myself. "I'm sure we will. I don't know where or when, but I know we'll meet again."

For some strange reason, this was comforting to hear. I doubt anything would bloom from this and I'm not sure if I wanted anything more….. but it was the possibility which I couldn't help but cling to. "W-well, good. I'd like to stay in touch." Chuckling a little to himself, he gave me a farewell nod. "Have a good night, Baby. It was a pleasure to see you." "It was a pleasure to see….. I mean meet you too! Have a good night, Chiaro; get home safe." He observed silently as I spun around to unlock the front door and go inside. But something instantly caught my arm, holding me in place. I didn't have time to say anything as Chiaro wrapped both his arms around me from behind, making me totally immobile.

"Stay away from the Shredder," the mysterious man whispered into my ear. "The Shredder? How do you know about the…..?" But by the time I turned around, Chiaro was nowhere to be seen. This alarmed me; how the heck did he leave that fast? Was he a ninja or something? Suddenly feeling very shaken, I bolted inside and trembly locked the door behind me. My eyes stared at the wood of the door for a long minute; I don't even think I blinked until my hand slowly rose to touch the cheek he held earlier. My fingertips ran across the skin; it felt hot and cold at once. I was blushing and flushed at the same time. That man….. Chiaro…. My eyes lowered thoughtfully. I'd never met anyone like him before….. have I? _"Those eyes of yours…. They still shine."_ Have I?

No One's P.O.V.-

The Shredder was gazing up at the night sky from the large window in his private chamber. Hearing a ruffle sound behind him, he immediately spun around to see Micheletto standing in the middle of the room on the red carpet. "Micheletto?!" This was an unexpected visit. "How did you get in here?" Shredder demanded in an angered tone. It was clear he wasn't let in by one of his henchmen; he entered unannounced and unescorted. The man in black just glared but at Shredder with firm eyes.

"Wait!" An idea occurred to Shredder when Micheletto didn't answer him. "Don't tell me you've killed Splinter already? It's hasn't been three days." "I am returning to Florence," the assassin said with finality. Shredder took this to mean "no". "You can't go back until that rat's dead; I've already paid for your services." "And I will execute this Splinter, next summer; after June." "After June? Why after June?" Shredder's eyes narrowed onto him suspiciously. "That is no concern of yours. I will return in the summer; you will not be charged twice."

The two men just studied each other for a second, giving Shredder time to contemplate why this would be the case. Only one thing came to mind….. "Did you find the one with psionics?" Micheletto frowned; not excessively but it was there. Shredder could certainly see it. "Where are they?" "I will only say this once, Oroku Saki. If you lay one finger…. I swear I will find you and trust me; you do not want me searching for you."

This caught the gang lord off guard; partly because of the disrespect and partly…. because he believed him. Micheletto stood fast in his resolve, not hesitating in the slightest to glare down Shredder. Neither said anything for a minute, only making the mood tenser. "Are you attached to this person?" Shredder had the nerve to ask. A pregnant pause, though the aura coming off Micheletto was deadly. Very deadly. It was enough to frighten even Shredder, who instantly realized his mistake. "I will kill you. Right here. Right now," Micheletto's eyes sharpened.

Weighing his options, Shredder decided to back down- at least until the infamous assassin was out of the city. He had no chance facing someone like Micheletto one-on-one; not like this. "Alright, if that's the way it is," Shredder growled viciously. He spun around to look out the window, too disgusted to look at Micheletto any longer. But when he checked over his shoulder to say something, the assassin was gone, not to be again until the end of June.


	18. Casey Jones

(Important fact: I love Hisoka from HunterxHunter- he is a villain done right in my opinion. He is the LAST external character I will introduce in the story, PROMISE! Everyone else has either been referenced in person or by word of mouth. But Hisoka's very, very important for both Casey and Baby's arch. Last one, promise!)

No One's P.O.V.-

Earlier that evening:

April grumbled to herself as she waited at the park. It was still light out, about six o'clock or so. Casey was supposed to meet her at six for their first tutoring session; he was unfashionably late. Groaning softly, the redhead pulled out her phone to check the time. A new message was waiting for her. [Baby: coming over 2 hang out at the lair with us?] April sighed and shook her head. [Me: I wish; I have 2 tutor (babysit) Mr. Helmet Head 2night] [Baby: gross lol. well have fun] [Me: thanks, have fun with the guys]

"Hey, Red." April glanced over to see Casey leaning against one the swing set's poles. He flashed her a cocky, confident, conceded smirk. "How ya doin', babe?" "About time you got here! Come on, let's get started; I don't want to be out late." "Gees, no need to be in such a hurry. We got all night," he casually plunked himself on a swing, motioning to the seat next to him. With a roll of the eyes, April joined him on the swing set. She pulled out a textbook and opened to the chapter they were currently studying in class.

"Ok," her brushed some stray hairs off her face before turning up to him. "Where should we start?" "You tell me," Casey started to swing. "You're the teach, teach." "That's not the way this works… I think? I don't know where you're at with the material." "Why don't you just start reading to me and I'll tell you when I don't get somethin'?" "You want me to read to you? Seriously?" April's eyebrow rose unimpressed. "Why not? I could listen to you all night," Casey said like this was the most obvious thing. But it wasn't obvious; it definitely caught April's immediate attention. "Really? You're not just saying that so I'll do all the work, are you?" "Why would I lie to you? We just met; not the best way to start a friendship, or something more," he added with a cute wink. April's cheeks flushed a little as she quickly turned back to the textbook. "A-alright, I guess we'll start with chapter one….."

To the redhead's surprise, the next hour was quite enjoyable; surprisingly pleasant. She read out loud, stopping every so often to quiz Casey about the material. He was actually listening to her, able to answer whatever questions she asked. After chapter one was done, April checked the time and shut the book. Casey stopped swinging to look at her curiously. "What? We're done already?" He sounded confused. "Well, yeah? We've covered this week's material, and it's already past seven…." "That's not fair." "What's not fair?" "You got to ask me a bunch of questions, but I didn't get to ask you anything." "That's cause I'm your tutor?" April's eyebrow raised again. She wasn't expecting Casey to grin at her the way he did; a playful, kind grin. The same flirty expression Donatello gave her whenever he thought she wasn't looking.

"Let's play a game," Casey began to swing again. "A game? What game?" "Twenty questions." "Casey…." Her eyes tiredly rolled. "It's fun! I'll go first. How old are you?" "Oh! I'm sixteen; I'll be seventeen in January." "Cool, you're younger than me; I just turned seventeen this summer. Ok, your turn." April wasn't sure how she felt in that moment. A part of her still wanted to go home but her curiosity was steadily growing… Inwardly sighing, she gave in. Another half an hour or so couldn't hurt. She looked at Casey with a clever grin.

"Alright, Jones. How'd you lose that tooth?" She pointed to her own which was missing in his mouth. "Hockey accident. I got hit in the mouth with a puck when I was twelve. Boy, was my dad mad! But I love it; all great hockey players have missing teeth. It's just part of the sport. Now my turn! What do you want to be when you grow up?" "You mean when we graduate school? Well…. I always wanted to be a reporter; I might go to school for journalism." "That's cool; I can stop the crime and you can report it." "You want to stop crime?" This surprised April. Wasn't he more suited to a professional athlete or something? "Heck yeah! This city's riddled with crime and I wanna do somethin' about it." "You mean like… be a cop?" "No; I work outside the law. I'm a vigilante." "Why?" This was more confusing than surprising now. "Because cops can't stop the real crime; those scumbags hiding in the shadows."

April knew this all too well. The law force was virtually useless in stopping the Kraang and Foot Clan. But she was surprised Casey also shared this view. Where did it come from? She was more curious than ever now but wanted to be tactful about it. "Ok, my turn." "Go for it, Red!" "What are you most afraid of?" "Well that's personal," Casey smirked. "Want me to ask you something else?" "No, I'll tell you but only if you tell me what you're afraid of first." The Kraang taking my father again, April immediately thought. It was then that she realized she couldn't be totally honest with Casey, no matter if he was truthful with her or not. She went with her second-biggest fear. "Bats; I'm afraid of bats." "Really? Huh." This made April blink over at him; she was expecting him to at least tease her a little but no. He just let it go.

"W-what about you?" April didn't let any silence slip into the conversation. "Promise not to laugh?" "Why would I laugh? I'm afraid of bats." "I'm terrified of cards." "Cards… like playing cards?" Casey nodded. "Cards and clowns." "Uh ok? Why?" The clown thing made a little bit of sense; who wasn't afraid of clowns? Being afraid of a deck of cards however…. The young vigilante took his time answering, which April allowed. Eventually he drew in a deep breath.

"When I was little, maybe six or seven, I saw someone get attacked with playing cards." "Really?! How is that even possible? There're little pieces of paper." April gasped stunned. "It happened in the city. I was outside our building playing street hockey; my dad was upstairs watching tv. Suddenly from around the corner, there was this guy screaming; it sounded like he was being stabbed or something. I stopped playing and saw him step backwards into view. Within seconds, he fell back onto his back revealing all these cards stuck in him. They were literally in his skin, sitting in him like knives. I was shocked and scared…." Casey paused for a brief moment, as if to summon the courage to finish the story. April didn't say anything

"And then…. from behind the same corner came out this clown; this friken' clown! But he wasn't like an old, hobo-ish, grinchy clown; he was really slim and had this bright red hair. I knew… he was the one who stuffed the guy full of cards cause he was still holding some in his hand. He looked over at me… and that…. that was the scariest moment of my life. I really thought I was going to die; something I'd never thought about before." "Casey…." "He just smiled at me; this twisted sick smile…. And then he took off, never to be seen again."

A quick pause fell over the two. "W-what happened to the guy? Did he…." "No, he lived, but barely. My dad found us and called an ambulance. I told the police that a clown attacked him but…. they never caught him. And I don't know if he's still out there; I've never heard or seen anything since." "Me either…." April's eyes drifted off into nowhere. "It could be… that he wasn't a bad guy." "What do you mean? He almost killed someone with cards." "The guy was a gang lord heavy in the drug industry," Casey explained. "He could have just been a vigilante for all I know. But he's the reason I'd use something like a hockey stick when I go out to fight crime." "Why?" His eyes moved so to look at her. "He showed me that ordinary things, like cards or hockey sticks, make the most terrifying weapons. If someone is strong and crafty enough to make them weapons…. There's something fascinating and terrifying about that mindset." "Yeah," April nodded thoughtfully. "I guess there is…."

Another brief lull. Without warning, Casey stopped swinging and got up to stretch his arms up in the air. "Ah, but don't worry about it, Red. It happened a long time ago. Come on, I'll walk you home." April felt a little weird after that whole story, but Casey didn't seem to mind at all. He immediately started joking and smirking again. But April wasn't ready to go home just yet; she was a little hungry. I'll go to Murakami-san on the way home, she decided as they left the park. "Alright, Red. Just lead the way." "Actually, I'm gonna make a stop on the way home." "Oh, ok then. Have fun, babe." "You too, Jones; get home safe," she couldn't help but smile; a nature smile.

Casey was about to head out before pausing to glance back at her over his shoulder. "Oh, by the way. I wanted to ask about your friend; uh, the one with the cute name." "Baby?" "Yeah, her. What's up with her eyes?" "Huh? What do you mean?" She blinked confused. "You can't see it? They're practically glowing." "What? No, they're not; they look completely normal." "I don't know," Casey's hands shoved into his hoodie's pockets. "There's somethin'….. shiny about them." "You're crazy, Jones. There's nothing wrong with Baby's eyes." "The only reason I ask is because the only other person I've seen with glowing eyes is… the clown." "Really? The clown's eyes glowed?" "Yeah; like really brightly." April just observed him for a second and when she realized that he was speaking in earnest, she gave a small grin. "Like I said, you're crazy Jones. It's impossible for eyes to glow; everyone knows that." "Maybe…."

"Have a good night, Jones," they gave each other a wave as April started to walk away. "I'll see you a school tomorrow!" Casey called back. With one last smile, the redhead made her way towards Murakami's. The timing was both good and bad; the Purple Dragon were already there and hassling Murakami-san. Frowning, April didn't hesitate to yank out her phone and text all the turtles about the situation. Then she turned to make her way home, knowing that she'd only get in the way if she stuck around. On the way though, she was stopped by something small and white on the ground. Curious, April reached down to pick it up; her eyes grew when she saw that it was a playing card. A card! That…. was a weird coincidence. She couldn't help but check around for any sign of movement or clowns. It was nothing but a dark, empty street both up and down. A cool breeze rolled through it, gently swaying April's red hair out in front of her. A really, really weird coincidence….


End file.
